Read Resource
curl --request GET \
--url http://localhost:8080/fhir/{resourceType}/{id} \
--header 'Authorization: Bearer <token>'import requests
url = "http://localhost:8080/fhir/{resourceType}/{id}"
headers = {"Authorization": "Bearer <token>"}
response = requests.get(url, headers=headers)
print(response.text)const options = {method: 'GET', headers: {Authorization: 'Bearer <token>'}};
fetch('http://localhost:8080/fhir/{resourceType}/{id}', options)
.then(res => res.json())
.then(res => console.log(res))
.catch(err => console.error(err));{
"resourceType": "Patient",
"id": "123",
"meta": {
"versionId": "5",
"lastUpdated": "2026-01-12T10:30:00.000Z"
},
"name": [
{
"use": "official",
"family": "Doe",
"given": ["John", "Michael"]
}
],
"gender": "male",
"birthDate": "1990-01-01",
"identifier": [
{
"system": "http://hospital.example/mrn",
"value": "12345"
}
],
"telecom": [
{
"system": "phone",
"value": "555-0100",
"use": "home"
}
]
}
HTTP/1.1 200 OK
Content-Type: application/fhir+json
ETag: W/"5"
Last-Modified: Mon, 12 Jan 2026 10:30:00 GMT
CRUD Operations
Read Resource
Retrieve a FHIR resource by its type and ID
GET
/
{resourceType}
/
{id}
Read Resource
curl --request GET \
--url http://localhost:8080/fhir/{resourceType}/{id} \
--header 'Authorization: Bearer <token>'import requests
url = "http://localhost:8080/fhir/{resourceType}/{id}"
headers = {"Authorization": "Bearer <token>"}
response = requests.get(url, headers=headers)
print(response.text)const options = {method: 'GET', headers: {Authorization: 'Bearer <token>'}};
fetch('http://localhost:8080/fhir/{resourceType}/{id}', options)
.then(res => res.json())
.then(res => console.log(res))
.catch(err => console.error(err));{
"resourceType": "Patient",
"id": "123",
"meta": {
"versionId": "5",
"lastUpdated": "2026-01-12T10:30:00.000Z"
},
"name": [
{
"use": "official",
"family": "Doe",
"given": ["John", "Michael"]
}
],
"gender": "male",
"birthDate": "1990-01-01",
"identifier": [
{
"system": "http://hospital.example/mrn",
"value": "12345"
}
],
"telecom": [
{
"system": "phone",
"value": "555-0100",
"use": "home"
}
]
}
HTTP/1.1 200 OK
Content-Type: application/fhir+json
ETag: W/"5"
Last-Modified: Mon, 12 Jan 2026 10:30:00 GMT
Retrieves the current version of a specific resource by its logical ID.
Endpoint
GET /fhir/{resourceType}/{id}
string
required
The FHIR resource type (e.g.,
Patient, Observation, Encounter)string
required
The logical ID of the resource
Headers
string
Response format:
application/fhir+json (default) or application/fhir+xmlstring
Conditional read. Only return resource if version differs from provided ETag.Example:
W/"5" - Returns 304 Not Modified if current version is still “5”string
Conditional read. Only return resource if modified after this timestamp.Example:
Mon, 12 Jan 2026 10:00:00 GMTResponse
200 OK
Resource found and returned.string
required
The logical ID of the resource
string
required
Current version number
string
required
ISO 8601 timestamp of last modification
{
"resourceType": "Patient",
"id": "123",
"meta": {
"versionId": "5",
"lastUpdated": "2026-01-12T10:30:00.000Z"
},
"name": [
{
"use": "official",
"family": "Doe",
"given": ["John", "Michael"]
}
],
"gender": "male",
"birthDate": "1990-01-01",
"identifier": [
{
"system": "http://hospital.example/mrn",
"value": "12345"
}
],
"telecom": [
{
"system": "phone",
"value": "555-0100",
"use": "home"
}
]
}
Headers:
HTTP/1.1 200 OK
Content-Type: application/fhir+json
ETag: W/"5"
Last-Modified: Mon, 12 Jan 2026 10:30:00 GMT
304 Not Modified
Conditional read succeeded, resource hasn’t changed (when usingIf-None-Match or If-Modified-Since).
No body returnedHeaders:
HTTP/1.1 304 Not Modified
ETag: W/"5"
Last-Modified: Mon, 12 Jan 2026 10:30:00 GMT
404 Not Found
Resource does not exist.{
"resourceType": "OperationOutcome",
"issue": [
{
"severity": "error",
"code": "not-found",
"diagnostics": "Resource Patient/123 not found"
}
]
}
410 Gone
Resource was deleted (soft delete).{
"resourceType": "OperationOutcome",
"issue": [
{
"severity": "error",
"code": "deleted",
"diagnostics": "Resource Patient/123 was deleted"
}
]
}
Accessing Deleted Resources: Use the history endpoint to read deleted resources:
GET /fhir/Patient/123/_history/5HEAD Request
Check if a resource exists without retrieving its content.HEAD /fhir/{resourceType}/{id}
Exists:HTTP/1.1 200 OK
ETag: W/"5"
Last-Modified: Mon, 12 Jan 2026 10:30:00 GMT
Not Found:
HTTP/1.1 404 Not Found
Deleted:
HTTP/1.1 410 Gone
No body returned in any case
Examples
curl -H "Accept: application/fhir+json" \
"https://your-server.com/fhir/Patient/123"
curl -H "Accept: application/fhir+json" \
-H 'If-None-Match: W/"5"' \
"https://your-server.com/fhir/Patient/123"
# Returns 304 if version is still "5", 200 with body if changed
curl -H "Accept: application/fhir+json" \
-H "If-Modified-Since: Mon, 12 Jan 2026 10:00:00 GMT" \
"https://your-server.com/fhir/Patient/123"
# Returns 304 if not modified since timestamp
curl -I "https://your-server.com/fhir/Patient/123"
# Returns only headers (200/404/410), no body
import requests
url = "https://your-server.com/fhir/Patient/123"
headers = {"Accept": "application/fhir+json"}
response = requests.get(url, headers=headers)
if response.status_code == 200:
patient = response.json()
version = patient['meta']['versionId']
print(f"Patient version {version}")
elif response.status_code == 404:
print("Patient not found")
elif response.status_code == 410:
print("Patient was deleted")
import requests
url = "https://your-server.com/fhir/Patient/123"
# First read
response = requests.get(url, headers={"Accept": "application/fhir+json"})
etag = response.headers['ETag']
patient = response.json()
# Later read with caching
response = requests.get(
url,
headers={
"Accept": "application/fhir+json",
"If-None-Match": etag
}
)
if response.status_code == 304:
print("Patient unchanged, using cached version")
else:
patient = response.json()
etag = response.headers['ETag']
print("Patient updated, refreshed cache")
const response = await fetch('https://your-server.com/fhir/Patient/123', {
headers: {
'Accept': 'application/fhir+json'
}
});
if (response.status === 200) {
const patient = await response.json();
console.log(`Patient ${patient.id} (v${patient.meta.versionId})`);
} else if (response.status === 404) {
console.log('Patient not found');
} else if (response.status === 410) {
console.log('Patient was deleted');
}
const response = await fetch('https://your-server.com/fhir/Patient/123', {
method: 'HEAD'
});
const exists = response.status === 200;
const deleted = response.status === 410;
const etag = response.headers.get('ETag');
console.log(`Exists: ${exists}, Deleted: ${deleted}, ETag: ${etag}`);
Notes
Case Sensitivity: Resource IDs are case-sensitive.
Patient/abc and Patient/ABC are different resources.Performance: Use
If-None-Match to avoid transferring unchanged resources. Cache the ETag from previous reads and send it with subsequent requests.Versioning: This endpoint always returns the current version. To read a specific historical version, use the versioned read endpoint:
GET /fhir/Patient/123/_history/5See Also
Versioned Read
Read a specific historical version
Search
Find resources by criteria
Update
Modify a resource
Resource History
View all versions of a resource
Authorizations
Bearer token authentication
Headers
For conditional reads (304 Not Modified)
For conditional reads (304 Not Modified)
Path Parameters
The FHIR resource type (e.g., Patient, Observation, Encounter)
The logical ID of the resource