HL7 RRI_I12 (Patient Referral Response) | Integration Soup HL7 Reference Guide

HL7 RRI_I12 Patient Referral Response

The response or update that comes back after a patient referral.

HL7 message structure RRI_I12 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
MSA	Message Acknowledgment	No	No
RF1	Referral Information	No	No
RRI_I12.AUTHORIZATION_CONTACT	Authorization Contact group	No	No
AUT	Authorization Information	Yes	No
CTD	Contact Data	No	No
RRI_I12.PROVIDER_CONTACT	Provider Contact group	Yes	Yes
PRD	Provider Data	Yes	No
CTD	Contact Data	No	Yes
PID	Patient Identification	Yes	No
ACC	Accident	No	No
DG1	Diagnosis	No	Yes
DRG	Diagnosis Related Group	No	Yes
AL1	Patient Allergy Information	No	Yes
RRI_I12.PROCEDURE	Procedure group	No	Yes
PR1	Procedures	Yes	No
RRI_I12.AUTCTD_SUPPGRP2	Autctd Suppgrp2 group	No	No
AUT	Authorization Information	Yes	No
CTD	Contact Data	No	No
RRI_I12.OBSERVATION	Observation group	No	Yes
OBR	Observation Request	Yes	No
NTE	Notes and Comments	No	Yes
RRI_I12.RESULTS_NOTES	Results Notes group	No	Yes
OBX	Observation/Result	Yes	No
NTE	Notes and Comments	No	Yes
RRI_I12.PATIENT_VISIT	Patient Visit group	No	No
PV1	Patient Visit	Yes	No
PV2	Patient Visit - Additional Information	No	No
NTE	Notes and Comments	No	Yes

RRI_I12 is the response side of a REF_I12 patient referral. Depending on the local workflow, it may acknowledge the referral, return status, report what happened after review, or send clinical/procedure information that resulted from the referral.

It looks similar to REF_I12 because referral responses often need much of the same context: provider roles, patient identity, diagnoses, procedures, observations, visit information, and notes. The meaning is different, though. RRI is about the response from the referred-to side, not a fresh referral request.

A small RRI I12 example

MSH|^~\&|ORTHO|CITYHOSP|REFERRAL|CITYCLINIC|20260718113000||RRI^I12^RRI_I12|RRI120001|P|2.5.1 MSA|AA|REF120001 RF1|A|R^Routine^HL70280|ORTHO^Orthopedic referral^L|20260718113000|20260801100000 AUT|1|PAYERHUB|CITYCARE|AUTH20260718|20260718110005|CONSULT^Specialist consultation^L|APPROVED^Approved^L CTD|PR|Auth^Ava|PO Box 77^^Auckland^^1140^NZ|^WPN^PH^^64^9^5557070 PRD|RT|Orthopedic Clinic^City Hospital|1 Hospital Way^^Auckland^^1010^NZ|^^^ORTHO|ORTHO CTD|PR|Booking^Team|1 Hospital Way^^Auckland^^1010^NZ|^WPN^PH^^64^9^5553300 PRD|RP|Nguyen^Mara^^^Dr^MD|88 Clinic Road^^Auckland^^1010^NZ|^^^CITYCLINIC|555555 PID|1||123456^^^CITYHOSP^MR||Smith^Jane^Anne^^Ms^^L||19800314|F DG1|1|I10|M25.561^Pain in right knee^I10|Pain in right knee|20260717103000|A PR1|1|CPT|99243^Office consultation^CPT|Specialist consultation|20260801100000 OBR|1|RRI120001^ORTHO||ORTHO-PLAN^Orthopedic referral plan^L|||20260718113000 OBX|1|TX|REFSTATUS^Referral status^L||Accepted. Appointment scheduled for 20260801 at 10:00.||||||F PV1|1|O|ORTHO^CLINIC^1^CITYHOSP NTE|1||Referral accepted and booking details returned.

What workflow it represents

The referred-to provider or service sends RRI_I12 back to the referring side. The message may confirm acceptance, provide booking details, request more information, return clinical findings, or report procedures and results that occurred because of the referral.

Downstream systems use it to update referral status, notify users, reconcile appointment or visit information, and close the loop with the original requester.

How to read the structure

MSH identifies the response, and optional MSA can tie it to the original message. RF1 carries referral status and timing context.

Authorization and provider contact groups use AUT, CTD, and PRD. PID identifies the patient. Clinical content may include DG1, PR1, OBR, OBX, PV1, and NTE.

Implementation traps

Do not treat every RRI as a simple ACK. It may carry meaningful status, appointment, authorization, procedure, or clinical information that needs to update the referral record.

Also be careful with visit context. HL7 notes that PV1/PV2 in RRI may describe the visit or encounter that resulted from the referral, rather than just mirroring the original REF message.

Reference notes

The HL7 v2+ patient referral chapter describes REF/RRI I12 as provider-to-provider referral messaging for a specific patient. It highlights that PV1/PV2 in RRI may represent the visit or encounter that resulted from the referral.