Custom ZorgMail integration
Appfront builds custom ZorgMail integrations that fully incorporate secure healthcare communication into your EHR or your own care application. Via the ZorgMail interfaces, you send and receive secure messages, exchange referrals and lab results in a structured way (EDIFACT and HL7), and consult the national directory of healthcare providers. This way, your organisation communicates securely with chain partners, strictly in line with the GDPR and the Dutch healthcare security standards NEN 7510, 7512 and 7513.
What is a ZorgMail integration?
ZorgMail by Enovation is the largest secure healthcare communication network in the Netherlands. It enables healthcare providers to exchange privacy-sensitive medical data securely and in a structured way: referrals, lab results, EDIFACT and HL7 messages, and secure email. A national directory of healthcare professionals ensures that messages always reach the right recipient.
In practice, a custom integration means: sending and receiving secure messages programmatically from your EHR or your own care application, exchanging referrals and lab results in a structured way via EDIFACT or HL7, processing status confirmations so it is clear that a message has been delivered, and consulting the directory to select the right healthcare provider. This makes secure communication a seamless part of your workflow rather than a separate task.
Appfront builds to the official ZorgMail API documentation and the OWASP ASVS security standard. We align interfaces, message definitions and error handling with your actual care processes, so the integration grows alongside your application and messages keep flowing reliably and securely, even at peak volumes.
Secure messaging
Secure email and structured messages with end-to-end security, with no unprotected emails carrying patient data. Send and receive directly from your EHR, ECD or care application, in line with healthcare standards.
Referrals & lab results
Structured exchange of referrals, lab results and chain messages via EDIFACT and HL7. Data arrives automatically and in the correct format in the receiving system, without retyping or manual processing.
National directory
Consult the national directory of healthcare providers directly from your application. Look up the right recipient and make sure referrals and messages reach the correct GP, pharmacy or institution.
Our development process for ZorgMail integrations
We work to a proven methodology that removes uncertainty early and delivers a stable, secure integration. From an initial analysis of your care processes, message flows and EHR or ECD integration through to go-live and ongoing management, every step is designed to give you an integration your team can understand and trust.
We map out which messages you want to exchange (secure email, referrals, lab results), which chain partners are involved, which message formats apply (EDIFACT, HL7), and whether the directory and status confirmations are needed.
We design the integration architecture, choose the right interfaces and authentication via certificates and credentials, and define an error-handling strategy.
Implementation with automated tests, structured logging and monitoring. You see working builds along the way.
Controlled go-live with data validation and a safety net, followed by ongoing management and further development.
What a ZorgMail integration delivers in practice
Every ZorgMail integration is tailored to your message types, care processes and adjacent systems. Below are the capabilities we most often deliver for organisations using ZorgMail as part of their secure healthcare communication.
Send and receive messages from your EHR/ECD
Send and receive secure messages directly from your EHR, ECD or in-house care application. The integration retrieves incoming messages, files them in a structured way in the record and sends outgoing communication without staff having to export anything manually.
Sending referrals
Automatically build and send referral messages to the right healthcare provider. Patient and referral data from the record is placed in the correct message format, so the receiving party can process the referral directly and in a structured way.
Lab results, EDIFACT & HL7
Receive and process structured lab results and chain messages via EDIFACT and HL7 (FHIR where applicable). Results arrive in the record automatically and validated, with coding and context preserved for reliable processing.
Consulting the directory
Search the national healthcare provider directory from within your application and select the right recipient. This helps prevent messages from being misaddressed and keeps the chain from sender to recipient watertight.
Status Confirmations
Process real-time status confirmations so it is clear whether a message has been delivered or whether action is required. Your team can be confident that a referral or result has arrived, with traceable logging as evidence in the record.
Patient & Client Communication
Secure communication with patients and clients where it fits your care process. Messages are delivered securely and fed back into your application in a structured way, so sensitive data never travels over unprotected channels.
Typical use cases in practice
A ZorgMail integration looks quite different from one organisation to the next. We see a number of recurring patterns, and for each we have a working setup that pays close attention to message definitions, interfaces and the right certificate-based security.
GPs & Pharmacies
GP practices and pharmacies that securely exchange referrals, prescriptions and messages with chain partners. Secure messaging and structured EDIFACT exchange become part of the daily workflow, with the address book helping you find the right recipient. See also our API integrations.
Hospitals
Hospitals and clinics that exchange lab results, discharge letters and referrals in a structured way with GPs and other institutions. We connect HL7 and EDIFACT messages to the hospital system, with status confirmations so the chain is demonstrably complete.
Mental Health & Home Care
Mental health and nursing, residential and home care organisations that securely exchange client information with partners in the care chain. Secure messages from the ECD, linked to the address book, keep sensitive communication within a trusted and demonstrably secure channel.
Healthcare technology and EHR vendors
Builders of healthcare software and EHR/ECD vendors who want secure healthcare communication built into their product as standard. We build a reusable interface to ZorgMail that grows with your platform. If you work with care ECDs, also take a look at our Nedap integration.
Technology we use
We build ZorgMail integrations using the official ZorgMail interfaces and APIs, combined with the backend stack that suits you. The precise choice depends on your EHR or ECD integration and message types, so your own team can manage or further develop the implementation.
Why choose Appfront for your ZorgMail integration?
Appfront has extensive experience building API integrations for a wide range of organisations in the Netherlands. We always start with a thorough analysis of your existing systems and processes. An integration should not only work technically but also add practical value to your care processes.
For every integration, we write clear documentation and make sure your own team, or any future supplier, can understand and manage it. No black box, just transparent code and clear agreements on monitoring, alerting and maintenance.
You work with a dedicated point of contact who understands both the technical and the functional side. This keeps communication short, prevents misunderstandings and speeds up decisions when choices need to be made during development.
See also our wider services around API integrations, middleware, custom software development and web app development.
- Experience with ZorgMail interfaces, secure email and structured messages
- Specialist in EHR integrations for healthcare
- Familiar with EDIFACT, HL7/FHIR, the address book and status confirmations
- Secure by default: certificates and credentials in secure vaults, with scoped permissions
- Structured error handling and retry mechanisms
- Comprehensive logging and monitoring from day one
- A way of working aligned with NEN 7510, 7512 and 7513
- Clear documentation your team can read and manage
- A fixed point of contact, no account managers passed around
- Ongoing maintenance and proactive further development
Security and privacy in ZorgMail integrations
Messages sent via ZorgMail contain medical personal data, the most sensitive category of personal data there is. Appfront builds in line with the ZorgMail security best practices and the OWASP ASVS. This means, among other things: certificates and API credentials kept in secure vaults, end-to-end security, data minimisation and regular audits of message flows.
ZorgMail focuses on secure healthcare communication and aligns with the Dutch healthcare standards NEN 7510, NEN 7512 and NEN 7513 for information security, data exchange and logging in healthcare. We document the data flows, message definitions and interfaces so that your record of processing activities is complete and you can demonstrably comply with the GDPR. Logging per message serves as traceable evidence for every exchange.
More on our security approach: information security policy and CVD policy.
- GDPR-compliant processing of medical personal data
- Alignment with NEN 7510, 7512 and 7513
- End-to-end security and encryption in transit (TLS) and at rest
- Role-based access and least-privilege principles
- Audit logs with traceable message flows
- Automatic retries and dead-letter queues
- Monitoring and alerting for anomalies
- Documentation for your record of processing activities
Frequently asked questions about ZorgMail integrations
Answers to the questions we are asked most often about ZorgMail implementations.
A ZorgMail integration is a technical integration between ZorgMail and another system, such as your EHR, GP or pharmacy system or a custom healthcare application. Through the ZorgMail interfaces, secure messages are sent and received programmatically, referrals and lab results are exchanged in a structured way (EDIFACT or HL7), and the national directory of healthcare providers can be consulted. An integration can range from simple (secure email from an application) to extensive (structured message exchange with status confirmations and directory integration).
ZorgMail is the standard for secure healthcare communication in the Netherlands and is suitable when you want to exchange privacy-sensitive medical data safely with other healthcare providers, for example referrals, lab results and messages between GPs, pharmacies, hospitals, mental health services and long-term care. The national directory ensures messages reach the right healthcare professional. For communication outside healthcare or international exchange, other channels are usually used; in that case we will work out together which route fits best.
A simple integration, for example sending and receiving secure messages from an application, can be delivered relatively quickly. More extensive scenarios with structured EDIFACT or HL7 messages, status confirmations, directory integration and an integration with an EHR usually take more time, partly because of the certificate setup and careful acceptance testing. After an intake conversation, we give you a realistic estimate.
We work with the ZorgMail interfaces and APIs in combination with the backend stack that suits you: Node.js, Python, .NET or Java. For structured messages we use EDIFACT and HL7 (FHIR where applicable); for secure email, the secure SMTP interface. Authentication runs through certificates and API credentials. We query the national directory via its dedicated interface, so that messages reach the right healthcare provider.
The cost is determined by the complexity of the data flows, the number of systems to connect, the message types required (secure email, EDIFACT, HL7), the use of the directory and status confirmations, and the amount of custom business logic. Ongoing management, monitoring and support also affect the total investment. We always provide a clear quote following a no-obligation analysis of your situation.
Yes. ZorgMail is designed for the secure exchange of medical personal data and aligns with the information security standards in healthcare (NEN 7510, NEN 7512 and NEN 7513). Appfront builds according to OWASP ASVS: certificates and API credentials are kept in secure vaults, with end-to-end security, data minimisation and strictly separated permissions per integration. We document the data flows so that your record of processing activities stays complete and you demonstrably comply with the GDPR.
Yes. Appfront regularly takes over existing healthcare integrations, even when they were originally set up by another party. We review the interfaces, message definitions, certificate configuration, address book integration and error handling, document the current setup and propose improvements. From that point on, we handle changes, extensions and monitoring, including timely rotation of certificates and credentials.
ZorgMail suits healthcare providers who need to communicate securely, such as GPs, pharmacies, hospitals, mental health services and long-term care, as well as healthtech builders and EHR vendors who want to offer secure healthcare communication in their product. Typical uses include exchanging referrals and lab results from an EHR, sending secure messages to chain partners and querying the national address book. Less suitable for communication outside healthcare, where we will work with you to identify a better-fitting channel.
Ready to build your ZorgMail integration?
Tell us which messages you need to exchange securely and which EHR, or healthcare application, ZorgMail needs to connect with. We are happy to think along about interfaces, EDIFACT and HL7, the address book and status confirmations. A no-obligation first conversation will quickly give you a clear picture of what is possible.