Visualize Live FHIR Data in Tableau

Tableau is a visual analytics platform transforming the way businesses use data to solve problems. When paired with the CData Tableau Connector for FHIR, you can easily get access to live FHIR data within Tableau. This article shows how to connect to FHIR in Tableau and build a simple chart.

The CData Tableau Connectors enable high-speed access to live FHIR data in Tableau. Once you install the connector, you simply authenticate with FHIR and you can immediately start building responsive, dynamic visualizations and dashboards. By surfacing FHIR data using native Tableau data types and handling complex filters, aggregations, & other operations automatically, CData Tableau Connectors grant seamless access to FHIR data.

NOTE: The CData Tableau Connectors require Tableau 2020.3 or higher. If you are using an older version of Tableau, you will need to use the CData Tableau Connector for FHIR. If you wish to connect to FHIR data in Tableau Cloud, you will need to use CData Connect Cloud.

Connect to FHIR in Tableau

Open Tableau and click More under Connect -> To a Server. Select "FHIR by CData," then configure the connection and click "Sign In."

Set URL to the Service Base URL of the FHIR server. This is the address where the resources are defined in the FHIR server you would like to connect to. Set ConnectionType to a supported connection type. Set ContentType to the format of your documents. Set AuthScheme based on the authentication requirements for your FHIR server.

Generic, Azure-based, AWS-based, and Google-based FHIR server implementations are supported.

Sample Service Base URLs

• Generic: http://my_fhir_server/r4b/
• Azure: https://MY_AZURE_FHIR.azurehealthcareapis.com/
• AWS: https://healthlake.REGION.amazonaws.com/datastore/DATASTORE_ID/r4/
• Google: https://healthcare.googleapis.com/v1/projects/PROJECT_ID/locations/LOCATION/datasets/DATASET_ID/fhirStores/FHIR_STORE_ID/fhir/

Generic FHIR Instances

The product supports connections to custom instances of FHIR. Authentication to custom FHIR servers is handled via OAuth (read more about OAuth in the Help documentation. Before you can connect to custom FHIR instances, you must set ConnectionType to Generic.

Discover Schemas and Query Data

1. Select CData from the Database pull-down menu.
2. Select FHIR from the Schema pull-down menu.
3. Drag the tables and views you wish to visualize onto the join area. You can include multiple tables.
4. Select Update Now or Automatically Update. Update Now lets you preview the first 10,000 rows of the data source (or enter the number of rows you want to see in the Rows text box). Automatically Update automatically reflects the changes in the preview area.
5. Click the tab for your worksheet. Columns are listed as Dimensions and Measures, depending on the data type. The CData Tableau Connector discovers data types automatically, allowing you to leverage the powerful data processing and visualization features of Tableau.
6. Drag a field from the Dimensions or Measures area to Rows or Columns. Tableau creates column or row headers.
7. Select one of the chart types from the Show Me tab. Tableau displays the chart type that you selected.

Using the CData Tableau Connector for FHIR with Tableau, you can easily create robust visualizations and reports on FHIR data. Download a free, 30-day trial and get started today.