How to Parse HL7 Messages with AI — Free MCP Server

TL;DR

Install the DICOM/HL7/FHIR MCP Server (pip install dicom-hl7-mcp), add it to Claude Desktop, and paste any HL7 v2.x message. Claude parses every segment, names every field, looks up table values, and explains what the message means in context. Free. No license required. The server covers 15 HL7 segment types, 200+ DICOM tags, and 20+ HL7 code tables.

The Problem

If you've worked in healthcare IT, you've done this a thousand times: someone sends you a raw HL7 message and asks "what's wrong with this?"

MSH|^~\&|RIS|RAD|EMR|HOSP|20240315140000||ORU^R01|MSG003|P|2.5.1 PID|1||MRN12345^^^HOSP^MR||DOE^JOHN||19650315|M OBR|1|ORD001|ACC001|CTABD^CT Abdomen^L|||20240315130000 OBX|1|FT|&GDT^Report||FINDINGS: Normal CT abdomen.||||||F

MSH|^~\&|RIS|RAD|EMR|HOSP|20240315140000||ORU^R01|MSG003|P|2.5.1 PID|1||MRN12345^^^HOSP^MR||DOE^JOHN||19650315|M OBR|1|ORD001|ACC001|CTABD^CT Abdomen^L|||20240315130000 OBX|1|FT|&GDT^Report||FINDINGS: Normal CT abdomen.||||||F

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You squint at pipe-delimited fields, count positions, check which table F refers to in OBX-11, and try to remember if OBR-18 is the accession number or the placer order number.

According to the HL7 International v2.5.1 specification, there are over 180 segment types and hundreds of code tables. Memorizing them isn't realistic. But an AI tool that knows the spec can look them up instantly.

Setup: 60 Seconds

Step 1: Install the MCP Server

pip install dicom-hl7-mcp

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The package is 120KB, pure Python, no compiled dependencies. Works on Python 3.10+.

Step 2: Add to Claude Desktop

Open your Claude Desktop config:

• macOS: ~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json

• Windows: %APPDATA%\Claude\claude_desktop_config.json

Add this:

{  "mcpServers": {  "dicom-hl7-assistant": {  "command": "uvx",  "args": ["dicom-hl7-mcp"]  }  } }

{  "mcpServers": {  "dicom-hl7-assistant": {  "command": "uvx",  "args": ["dicom-hl7-mcp"]  }  } }

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Restart Claude Desktop. Done.

Step 3: Paste and Ask

Paste your HL7 message into Claude and say:

"Parse this HL7 message"

Claude calls the parse_hl7_message tool and returns every field with its name, value, data type, table lookups, and contextual notes.

What You Get

For the message above, Claude returns a full parse with field-level detail:

Segment Field Name Value Notes

MSH-9 Message Type ORU^R01 Observation Result/Unsolicited Radiology report delivery

PID-3 Patient ID List MRN12345 Medical Record Number Assigning authority: HOSP

PID-5 Patient Name DOE^JOHN Last^First format PN data type per HL7 spec

OBR-4 Universal Service ID CTABD^CT Abdomen^L Procedure code Local coding system (L)

OBX-11 Result Status F Final result HL7 Table 0085

Plus vendor quirks, cross-references, and integration notes based on 19 years of building PACS, RIS, and HIS interfaces in production healthcare environments.

What the Server Knows

The DICOM/HL7/FHIR MCP Server (built by NyxTools) includes a curated knowledge base drawn from published standards and real-world integration experience:

Coverage Count Source

DICOM tags ~200 most common DICOM PS3.6 (2024b)

HL7 segments 15 (MSH, PID, PV1, OBR, OBX, ORC, and more) HL7 v2.5.1

HL7 code tables 20+ (Administrative Sex, Patient Class, Result Status, etc.) HL7 International

FHIR R4 mappings 96 cross-standard mappings HL7 v2-to-FHIR IG

Vendor private tags 7 vendors (GE, Siemens, Philips, Fuji, Agfa, Canon, Hologic) Field experience

Integration patterns 7 (ADT feed, order-to-result, IHE SWF, and more) IHE Technical Framework

5 Free Tools

Tool What It Does

lookup_dicom_tag Look up any DICOM tag by number or keyword

explain_dicom_tag Detailed explanation with vendor quirks

parse_hl7_message Parse HL7 v2.x messages with field-level detail

explain_hl7_segment Explain any segment's fields and data types

lookup_hl7_table Look up HL7 table values

Free, forever. No license, no sign-up, no email gate.

Premium: Cross-Standard Mapping + PACS Connectivity

The premium tier (v0.2.0, released April 2026) adds 12 more tools:

• Cross-standard mapping: DICOM-to-HL7, HL7-to-FHIR with data type conversion notes

• Mirth Connect generation: Complete channel XML configs from a use case description

• PACS connectivity: C-FIND, C-MOVE, DICOMweb (QIDO-RS, WADO-RS) to query real PACS systems

• Study summary: Query a study from PACS and auto-map it through DICOM, HL7, and FHIR in one call

17 tools total. The only MCP server that bridges all three healthcare standards with live PACS connectivity.

Premium license at nyxtools.gumroad.com

FAQ

What HL7 versions does this support? v2.3 through v2.9, with focus on v2.5.1 (the most widely deployed version in US healthcare). The parser handles any pipe-delimited HL7 v2.x message regardless of version.

Does it work with Mirth Connect? Yes. The free tier parses messages you're debugging in Mirth. The premium tier generates complete Mirth Connect channel configurations from a use case description.

Can I connect it to my PACS? With the premium tier and [pacs] extras (pip install dicom-hl7-mcp[pacs]), you can connect via C-FIND/C-MOVE or DICOMweb. Tested with Orthanc, RamSoft, and DCM4CHEE.

Is patient data (PHI) safe? The free reference tools process standards metadata, not patient data. The PACS connectivity tools include PHI safety: log redaction, result warnings, and optional output redaction. See the PHI Safety section in the README.

What MCP clients work with this? Any MCP-compatible client. Tested with Claude Desktop, Claude Code, and Cursor.

Links

• GitHub: NyxToolsDev/dicom-hl7-mcp-server

• PyPI: dicom-hl7-mcp

• Official MCP Registry: io.github.NyxToolsDev/dicom-hl7-mcp-server

• Glama: Quality A, Security A, License A

Last updated: April 2026 | v0.2.0

Built by NyxTools. 19 years of healthcare IT integration experience, packaged as open-source tools.