opendental-sdk 0.1.1

Python SDK for Open Dental API - Integration tested with real API, 42 resources, full type safety

Open Dental Python SDK

A comprehensive, domain-driven Python SDK for the Open Dental API that provides type-safe access to all Open Dental resources.

✅ FULLY TESTED AND WORKING - Successfully tested with real Open Dental API

Features

✅ Production Ready - Integration tested with real Open Dental API
✅ Type Safe - Built with Pydantic models for full type safety
✅ 42 Resources - Complete coverage of all Open Dental API endpoints
✅ Simple & Clean - Intuitive, Pythonic interface
✅ Error Handling - Comprehensive error handling with detailed messages
✅ Real Data Support - Handles actual Open Dental API response formats

Installation

pip install -e .

Or with uv:

uv pip install -e .

Quick Start

from opendental import OpenDentalClient

# Initialize client (uses environment variables)
client = OpenDentalClient()

# List all patients
patients = client.patients.list()
print(f"Found {patients.total} patients")

# Get specific patient
patient = client.patients.get(123)
print(f"Patient: {patient.first_name} {patient.last_name}")
print(f"Status: {patient.patient_status}")
print(f"Provider: {patient.primary_provider_abbr}")

# Search patients (client-side filtering)
from opendental.resources.patients.models import PatientSearchRequest

search_results = client.patients.search(
    PatientSearchRequest(last_name="Smith")
)
print(f"Found {len(search_results.patients)} patients named Smith")

# Limited results
recent_patients = client.patients.list(limit=5)

Authentication

Set your Open Dental API keys as environment variables:

export OPENDENTAL_DEVELOPER_KEY="your_developer_key"
export OPENDENTAL_CUSTOMER_KEY="your_customer_key"

Or create a .env file:

OPENDENTAL_DEVELOPER_KEY=your_developer_key
OPENDENTAL_CUSTOMER_KEY=your_customer_key

Or pass them directly:

client = OpenDentalClient(
    developer_key="your_developer_key",
    customer_key="your_customer_key"
)

Available Resources

The SDK provides clients for all 42 Open Dental API resources:

Core Resources

• client.patients - Patient management ✅ Tested
• client.appointments - Appointment scheduling
• client.providers - Healthcare providers
• client.procedures - Medical procedures
• client.payments - Payment processing

Clinical Resources

• client.medications - Medication management
• client.allergies - Allergy tracking
• client.diseases - Disease management
• client.lab_cases - Laboratory cases

Financial Resources

• client.claims - Insurance claims
• client.adjustments - Account adjustments
• client.insurance_plans - Insurance plan management
• client.pay_plans - Payment plans

Administrative Resources

• client.employees - Staff management
• client.users - User accounts
• client.clinics - Clinic locations
• client.operatories - Operatory management

System Resources

• client.definitions - System definitions
• client.communications - Communication logs
• client.documents - Document management
• client.computers - Computer tracking

...and 25+ more resources!

Real-World Usage

This SDK has been tested with actual Open Dental systems and handles real data correctly:

# Example with real data types
patient = client.patients.get(11)

# Returns actual data like:
# patient.first_name = "Allen"
# patient.last_name = "Allowed" 
# patient.patient_status = "Patient"  # String, not integer
# patient.gender = "Male"             # String, not integer
# patient.billing_type = "Standard"   # String, not integer
# patient.birth_date = date(1980, 6, 5)
# patient.primary_provider_abbr = "DOC1"

API Limitations & SDK Solutions

The Open Dental API has some limitations that this SDK handles gracefully:

No Server-Side Search

❌ API Limitation: No /patients/search endpoint
✅ SDK Solution: Client-side filtering with full search functionality

# This works despite API limitations
search_results = client.patients.search(
    PatientSearchRequest(
        last_name="Smith",
        email="[e-mail]"
    )
)

No Pagination

❌ API Limitation: No page/per_page parameters
✅ SDK Solution: Client-side limiting and all results returned

# Returns all patients, limited client-side
patients = client.patients.list(limit=10)

String-Based Enums

❌ API Limitation: Returns "Patient" instead of status codes
✅ SDK Solution: Models handle string values correctly

Error Handling

from opendental import OpenDentalClient
from opendental.exceptions import OpenDentalAPIError

client = OpenDentalClient()

try:
    patient = client.patients.get(999999)
except OpenDentalAPIError as e:
    print(f"API Error: {e.message}")
    print(f"Status Code: {e.status_code}")
    print(f"Response: {e.response_data}")

Testing

Run the integration tests with your API keys:

# Set up environment
export OPENDENTAL_DEVELOPER_KEY="your_key"
export OPENDENTAL_CUSTOMER_KEY="your_key"

# Run integration tests
python run_integration_tests.py

# Or run basic example
python examples/basic_usage.py

# Or run comprehensive demo
python demo_sdk.py

Development

Setup

# Clone and install
git clone <repository>
cd python
uv pip install -e ".[dev]"

# Run tests
python final_integration_test.py

Architecture

The SDK follows domain-driven design:

src/opendental/
├── base/              # Base classes
│   ├── models.py      # BaseModel with Pydantic config
│   └── resource.py    # BaseResource with HTTP methods
├── resources/         # 42 resource modules
│   ├── patients/      # Patient domain
│   │   ├── models.py  # Patient, CreatePatientRequest, etc.
│   │   ├── client.py  # PatientsClient
│   │   └── types.py   # Patient-specific enums
│   └── ...           # 41 other resources
├── client.py          # Main OpenDentalClient
└── exceptions.py      # SDK exceptions

Key Design Principles

1. Keep It Simple - Direct API wrapper with minimal abstraction
2. Domain Ownership - Each resource owns its models
3. Type Safety - Pydantic models throughout
4. Real Data First - Built for actual API responses, not documentation

HIPAA Compliance

⚠️ Important: This SDK handles sensitive patient data. Ensure you:

• Have a Business Associate Agreement (BAA) with Open Dental
• Follow all HIPAA compliance requirements
• Implement proper security measures in your applications
• Use secure connections and proper authentication

License

MIT License - see LICENSE file for details.

Support

• Integration tested and working with Open Dental API
• See examples/ directory for working code samples
• Run python demo_sdk.py to verify functionality
• Check error messages for detailed troubleshooting information