Mirth Connect, by NextGen Healthcare, is a versatile and robust healthcare data integration engine designed to solve the critical challenge of interoperability between disparate health information systems. Originally launched as an open-source project, it has become an industry-leading tool, with NextGen reporting that it powers one-third of all public Health Information Exchanges in the U.S. and is deployed in over 40 countries.
Key Capabilities and Features:
Mirth Connect acts as a universal translator for healthcare systems, enabling real-time exchange of clinical and administrative data. It supports a wide array of healthcare data standards and protocols, including HL7 v2.x, HL7 v3 (CDA/CCD), FHIR (Fast Healthcare Interoperability Resources), DICOM, X12 (EDI), JSON, and XML. The platform's core functionality is built around its channel-based architecture, which allows users to define message pathways for:
- Filtering: Intelligently parsing and filtering incoming messages based on user-defined rules or scripting.
- Transformation: Converting messages from one format to another (e.g., HL7 to FHIR JSON) using a graphical drag-and-drop editor or a versatile JavaScript/Java scripting engine.
- Routing: Directing messages to one or multiple destination systems securely and efficiently.
- Data Ingestion: Connecting to systems via various protocols like TCP/MLLP, HTTP/HTTPS (REST and SOAP), FTP/SFTP, databases (JDBC), and web services.
Licensing and Deployment:
Historically, Mirth Connect was known for its free, open-source version (under the Mozilla Public License 2.0). While older versions remain available as a free tier, new versions (4.6+) have transitioned to a fully commercial, proprietary license model with tiered annual subscriptions (Enterprise, Gold, Platinum) provided by NextGen Healthcare. It is a cross-platform application (written in Java) that supports flexible deployment, including on-premise servers and cloud environments (e.g., AWS).