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Contributing

OHTF projects are built in the open, by clinicians, developers and anyone else who wants health software to be better. You do not need permission to start: find a project, read its README, and open an issue or pull request. OHTF projects are a do-ocracy: the people who do the work decide how it is done.

Ways to help

  • Use a project and report problems. A clear bug report with steps to reproduce is a genuine contribution.
  • Improve documentation. Every page on this site has an edit link; the same is true of most project docs.
  • Write code or tests. Look for issues labelled good first issue or help wanted in OHTF repositories.
  • Port a library. Several projects, such as NHS Number (Python), publish language-agnostic test vectors so that a port in another language can prove it is correct.
  • Review clinical content. Clinicians reviewing logic and safety documentation is as valuable as code.

The basics

Every OHTF project follows the same few rules, so you only have to learn them once:

  1. Be decent. All OHTF spaces follow the code of conduct.
  2. Sign off your commits. Contributions carry a Developer Certificate of Origin sign-off: git commit -s.
  3. Report vulnerabilities privately. Never in a public issue. See the security policy.
  4. Never include real patient data. Not in issues, pull requests, test fixtures, screenshots or logs. Use synthetic data, and if you find real data anywhere, report it privately.

Individual projects may add their own contribution guide covering their build, test and release process. Where a project's guide differs from this page, the project's guide wins for that project.

Contributing alongside a day job

Many contributors work for NHS organisations, universities or companies. A few things that help:

  • Check whether your employer has an open-source contribution policy. Many do, and many allow contributions made on your own time.
  • The DCO sign-off records that you have the right to make the contribution. If your contribution was made as part of your job, make sure your employer is content with it.
  • OHTF projects are published under open licences that disclaim warranty and liability. Publishing a contribution to an open-source library is closer to publishing a recipe than to supplying a product.

If your employer has questions about contributing to an OHTF project, contact us and we will help.