Address as Nested Attribute Vs Location as Reference Attribute

You can choose to use Address as a nested attribute or Location as a reference attribute based on the business requirement.

Before understanding the two implementations, review the following entities in the table:

Table 1. Entities to Understand the Two Implementations
Entity Sample
Address 
{
 "AddressLine1": "1335 Washington St",
    "City": "Hanover",
    "StateProvince": "Massachusetts",
    "Country": "United States",
    "Zip": {
      "Zip5": "02339",
      "Zip4": "1649"
}
}
HCP (Individual) 
{
  "ID": "24816368",
  "FirstName": "Christopher",
  "LastName": "Brehm",
  "MiddleName": "John",
  "ProfDesignation": "Assistive Therapy",
  "Credentials": "PT",
  "License": {
    "Number": "DAPT000607",
    "IssueDate": "2004-12-21",
    "Status": "Active",
    "WorkType": "PHT",
    "ExpirationDate": "2016-12-31"
  },
  "Specialities": {
    "SpecialtyType": "Primary",
    "Specialty": "Assistive Therapy"
  },
  "Identifiers": [
    {
      "Type": "NPI",
      "ID": "1902856842"
    },
    {
      "Type": "HMS",
      "ID": "PI68TE82M3"
    }
  ],
  "Addresses": {
    "AddressType": "Shipping",
    "AddressLine1": "1335 Washington St",
    "City": "Hanover",
    "StateProvince": "Massachusetts",
    "Country": "United States",
    "Zip": {
      "Zip5": "02339",
      "Zip4": "1649"
    }
  }
}
HCO (Organization) 
{
  "ID": "24816368",
  "Name": "Ontario County Mental Health Clinic",
  "LegalBusinessName": "Ontario County Mental Health Clinic",
  "Status": "Active",
  "Addresses": {
    "AddressType": "Shipping",
    "AddressLine1": "1335 Washington St",
    "City": "Hanover",
    "StateProvince": "Massachusetts",
    "Country": "United States",
    "Zip": {
      "Zip5": "02339",
      "Zip4": "1649"
    }
  }
}
Note: Reltio recommends you to use Address as a nested attribute for better performance.

Implementation 1- Location as a Reference Attribute

In a scenario where the Address acts as a reference attribute for both the HCP and HCO, which means that the L1 layer in Reltio’s Information Model defines a relationship that links the Address and the Individual using the affiliatedwith relationship type. Similarly, the Address is also linked with the Organization. The affiliatedwith definition goes further and defines the Address entity type to be a reference attribute of the Individual and the Organization entity types.

If the Address gets modified, the changes must be updated across the reference attributes, Individual and Organization.

Steps to Follow

The following steps define the order in which this implementation is applied.

  1. Define the location entity with the appropriate cleanse configuration.
  2. Define the HCP/HCO with location as the reference attribute.
  3. Define the relationship type, HasAddress, between the HCP/HCO and the location entity.
  4. Create a reference attribute in the HCP/HCO to link the location entity, using the relationship type defined in step 3.
L3 Configuration for Location as a Reference Attribute

Sample

Implementation 2 - Address as a Nested Attribute

In a scenario where the Address acts as a nested attribute for both the HCP and HCO, it has sub-attributes of Address Line1, City, State Province, Country, and Zip. For Address, all these sub-attributes are only meaningful when held together as a collection. When posted as a nested attribute the entire collection represents a single instance (the value) of the nested attribute. Hence, if the Address gets modified for the Individual, the changes are impacted on it directly.

In a similar manner, it can be separately updated for the Organization. Address as a nested attribute can be independently updated on one entity type.

Steps to Follow

The following steps define the order in which this implementation is applied.

  1. Define the HCP/HCO.
  2. Add address as the nested attribute with the required fields.
  3. Define the cleanse configuration for the HCO/HCP.
  4. In the cleanse configuration, add the appropriate path for the nested attribute.
L3 Configuration for Address as a Nested Attribute

Sample