HL7 QBP_Z73 (Information about Phone Calls) | Integration Soup HL7 Reference Guide

HL7 QBP_Z73 Information about Phone Calls

A narrow QBP query for phone-call usage data used in non-medical service charging.

HL7 message structure QBP_Z73 groups and segments from HL7 v2.5.1 Hide structure

These are the generated groups and segments for the version selected at the top of the page. The article explains the workflow, and this panel follows the chosen HL7 version.

Message Structure

Segment	Name	Required	Repeatable
MSH	Message Header	Yes	No
SFT	Software Segment	No	Yes
QPD	Query Parameter Definition	Yes	No
RCP	Response Control Parameter	Yes	No

QBP_Z73 is one of those HL7 messages that reminds you HL7 v2 was used for more than strictly clinical data. It asks a phone or non-medical service system for call information, usually so patient accounting can bill accumulated or detailed telephone usage.

The message is small: MSH, optional SFT, required QPD, and required RCP. The response is normally the tabular RTB_Z74, where each row carries the chargeable call summary or detail.

A small QBP Z73 example

MSH|^~\&|BILLING|CITYHOSP|PHONE|CITYHOSP|20260718100000||QBP^Z73^QBP_Z73|QBPZ730001|P|2.5.1 QPD|Z89^Query Phone Calls^HL70471|QCALL001|123456^^^CITYHOSP^MR|20260701000000^20260717235959|Y RCP|I|20^RD

What workflow it represents

The requester is usually patient accounting, billing middleware, or an integration engine preparing charge detail. The receiver is the phone, switchboard, bedside-service, or non-medical service system that has the raw usage data.

In practice, this query should be treated like a billing extraction, not a casual lookup. The patient or account identifier, date range, accumulated-versus-detail flag, quantity limit, and continuation rules need to be nailed down before anyone trusts the charges.

How to read the structure

QPD-1 names the query profile, QPD-2 carries the query tag, and the remaining QPD fields are profile-defined parameters. In the HL7 example family, the parameters identify the patient and the date range to search. RCP controls how many rows the requester wants and whether the response should be immediate.

The message does not carry RDF because the table definition comes back in RTB_Z74. The query says what rows are wanted; the response says what columns were returned.

Implementation traps

The obvious trap is assuming a Z trigger means "anything local goes." Z73 is still a defined query profile in the phone-call charging example, and both systems still need to agree on QPD parameter positions and response columns.

Also be careful with date boundaries. Phone-call charging rows can cross midnight, discharge time, or account close time. If the receiver interprets the date range differently than billing does, the interface can quietly duplicate or miss charges.

Reference notes

HL7's refactored Z73 material describes phone-call queries using query by parameter with a virtual table response, and the HL7 event list identifies Z73 as information about phone calls. See the HL7 Europe pages for QBP_Z73 and event Z73.