PDS FHIR API – Removing / Adding in a single PATCH request

Personal Demographics Service (PDS)
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1

We are seeing an issue when updating patient nominations using the PDS FHIR API.

When we remove a Nominated Pharmacy and add a Medical Appliance Supplier in the same PATCH request, the request is rejected with the following error:

{

*"issue": \[*

    *{*

        *"code": "structure",*

        *"details": {*

            *"coding": \[*

                *{*

                    *"code": "INVALID_UPDATE",*

                    *"display": "Update is invalid",*

                    *"system": "https://fhir.nhs.uk/R4/CodeSystem/Spine-ErrorOrWarningCode",*

                    *"version": "1"*

                *}*

            *\]*

        *},*

        *"diagnostics": "Invalid update with error - cannot replace a pharmacy type when it does not exist - add one instead for type 'https://fhir.hl7.org.uk/StructureDefinition/Extension-UKCore-MedicalApplianceSupplier'",*

        *"severity": "error"*

    *}*

*\],*

*"resourceType": "OperationOutcome"*

}

Could you please confirm whether changing the nomination type (for example, removing a Nominated Pharmacy and adding a Medical Appliance Supplier) is supported within a single PATCH request, or whether this must be performed as two separate PATCH requests?

Thanks,

2

I think that the documentation in “Special considerations for removals” on Personal Demographics Service - FHIR API - NHS England Digital should cover this.

A remove followed by an add?

If you log a Service Desk ticket with request ids, datetimes and nhsnumber (for PTL test data) that will help understand it.

3

We are performing “remove and add” (i.e removed nominated pharmacy and added medical appliance) in the same patch request. Is it even allowed? Test is performed against INT sandpit

NHSNumber = 9738507758

send Date Time = 2026-07-27T15:16:52

request ID= 776062FF-3BC4-4332-9540-E75F9267E515

Incident ref no= CS1565769

4

I’ve included a summary of the issue on the support ticket, and also had a call with Niru and Ian last week, but for visibility this is ultimately a bug/limitation of the PDS FHIR API for which I’ve opened a new Problem ticket (PRB0045743) for us in Core Demo to look at.

The workaround in the interim is to separate the remove and add operations into separate requests.

5

Thanks @Adam_Tallentire