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Connecting the bioMerieux BIOFIRE FilmArray to your LIS or EHR
Syndromic panel testing turns one sample into a long list of targets, and a positive can shape care within the hour. But when the result has to reach the systems your clinic runs on by hand, someone reads a multiplex panel off the instrument or a printout and keys each line into the patient record. That takes time, a busy panel is easy to mis-enter, and the record of who did what can be thin.
This page explains, in plain terms, how a bioMerieux (BioFire) BIOFIRE FilmArray can send its results into a laboratory information system (LIS) or electronic health record (EHR), and what Catenix does in the middle so that results flow automatically and quality-control data stays where it belongs.
Quick answer
The BIOFIRE FilmArray reaches the network through the BioFire Link software, which offers an HL7 v2 result interface. Catenix captures those results at your site with a small on-site gateway, keeps the panel targets grouped against the same test event, keeps quality-control runs separate from patient results, preserves an audit trail, and can forward the patient results to your LIS or EHR. You avoid manual transcription and keep a clear record of what was received.
| Aspect | What Catenix supports |
|---|---|
| Device type | Multiplex PCR syndromic panel analyser |
| Interface family | HL7 v2 result messages from the BioFire Link software |
| Transport | Over the site network (TCP/IP) |
| Direction | Unidirectional or bidirectional, matched to your workflow |
| Result format | Panel targets captured together against one test event |
| Quality control | QC runs identified and held separate from patient results |
| Onward delivery | Patient results can be pushed to a LIS or EHR |
What the BIOFIRE FilmArray measures
The bioMerieux (BioFire) BIOFIRE FilmArray is a multiplex PCR system that runs syndromic panels: a single sample is tested against many pathogen targets at once, grouped by clinical syndrome. On its public materials the panel range covers areas such as respiratory, gastrointestinal, blood culture identification, meningitis and encephalitis, and each panel reports a set of detected or not-detected targets for that syndrome.
Catenix does not change what the device measures or how it is operated. Our scope is connectivity: taking the results the analyser already produces and moving them reliably into your other systems. We make no claim about the device's clinical performance or its suitability for any diagnostic decision.
How the BIOFIRE FilmArray connects
Individual FilmArray instruments are not usually wired straight into a clinic network. Instead, runs are gathered by the BioFire Link software, and it is that software that presents results to the wider network. On its public data sheets, that software offers an HL7 v2 result interface, the same general messaging family used across much of healthcare for sending results between systems.
HL7 version 2 is a long-established standard for exchanging clinical messages such as results. In broad terms, each message carries the identifying details of a test event and the values that go with it, structured so that a receiving system can file them against the right record. For a syndromic panel, that means the individual targets can travel together as one grouped result rather than scattered lines. Catenix speaks this general interface. We do not need, and this page does not publish, any vendor-specific internal detail about how individual values are laid out.
At your site, a small Catenix gateway sits on the local network and receives the result messages the BioFire Link software sends. The gateway is the only piece of new hardware involved, and it runs quietly alongside your existing kit.
Results and quality control in Catenix
Once the gateway receives a result, Catenix records it in your cloud workspace with a timestamp and keeps an audit trail of what arrived and when. The panel targets stay grouped against the same test event, and nothing is retyped, so what lands in the record is what the analyser produced.
Point-of-care and near-patient analysers also produce quality-control runs, the checks that confirm the instrument and reagents are behaving as expected. Catenix identifies these QC runs and keeps them separate from patient results, so a control sample never lands in a patient's record and your QC history stays intact for review. This separation is worked out from the information in the incoming results, without any change to how the analyser is used.
From there, Catenix can forward the patient results onward to the systems your site already runs, such as a LIS or an EHR. The result flows once, automatically, from the instrument through to the record, and the same audit trail follows it.
Getting connected
To connect a BIOFIRE FilmArray, a site typically needs the BioFire Link software configured to send results over the network, a Catenix gateway on that same network, and agreement on where patient results should be delivered. Most of the setup is configuration rather than new equipment.
If you are planning a connection or want to check what your current setup allows, our team can talk it through with you. See /contact/ to get in touch, /platform/ for how the workspace and gateway fit together, and /pricing/ for how it is packaged. For security and data handling, see /security/ and /trust/.
Questions clinics ask
Can I connect a BIOFIRE FilmArray to my LIS?
Yes. The BioFire Link software offers an HL7 v2 result interface over the network, and Catenix captures results from it and can forward them to a LIS or EHR. The main requirement is that the software is set to send results and that a Catenix gateway is on the same network.
Does the connection carry the whole syndromic panel?
Catenix carries whatever the BioFire Link software sends in its result message. Where the software reports each target on a multiplex panel, those results are captured together against the same test event, so the panel arrives as a set rather than a single line.
Do I need new hardware to make this work?
The only new item is the small Catenix gateway that sits on your local network. Your FilmArray instruments and the BioFire Link software carry on as they are, and most of the work is configuration rather than installation.
How are quality-control runs handled?
Catenix recognises QC runs in the incoming results and keeps them separate from patient records. Your control results stay grouped for review and never appear against a patient, which keeps both the patient record and the QC history clean.
Is the connection one-way or two-way?
The BioFire Link software supports HL7 v2 in a unidirectional or a bidirectional arrangement. Catenix can capture results one-way, or work with an order feed where your systems and workflow support it, so the setup is matched to how your site runs.
How do we get started?
Get in touch through /contact/ and we can review your current setup, the BioFire Link configuration, and where you want results delivered. See /platform/ for how the gateway and workspace work together.
Product and company names mentioned are the trademarks of their respective owners. Reference to them is for identification only and does not imply any affiliation with, endorsement by, or certification from those owners. This page describes connectivity and data handling only and is not clinical advice.
Reviewed July 2026. Back to integrations. Going deeper on the standard: our HL7 v2 field guide.
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