HL7 ECR Equipment Command Response
HL7 field reference ECR fields from HL7 v2.5.1 Show fields
These are the generated fields for the version selected at the top of the page. The document stays the same, but the reference panel follows that version.
Fields
ECR reports the response to an equipment command, including status and command response detail.
The standard describes ECR this way: The equipment command response segment contains the receiving component's response to the previously received command.
Equipment and specimen-control segments are used around instruments, analyzers, containers, device commands, device status, and test configuration. They are practical plumbing for lab and automation workflows.
The main trap is treating an equipment status as if it were a clinical result, or treating a specimen/container identifier as if it were interchangeable with a patient or order identifier. Keep the layers separate.
The v2.5.1 structures show ECR in EAR_U08 - Automated equipment response. That tells you where it can appear, but the implementation guide still decides which optional fields are meaningful.
For practical interface work, read the generated field panel for datatype, required, repeatable, and table details, then use the notes below to decide what the field should mean in the receiving workflow.
ECR-1 carries Command Response for this equipment or specimen workflow. Populate it only when the receiver has a clear use for it, and keep the value in the datatype shape shown in the generated field panel.
The generated panel links this to HL7 table 0387; many real interfaces narrow that list further, so follow the receiver's implementation guide.
ECR-2 is a timing field. Send the real source-system precision, do not pad unknown dates or times, and agree how timezone offsets are handled when time of day matters.
ECR-3 carries Command Response Parameters for this equipment or specimen workflow. Populate it only when the receiver has a clear use for it, and keep the value in the datatype shape shown in the generated field panel.
This field can repeat. Use repetitions for separate real-world values, not as a workaround for putting several unrelated ideas in one field.