A very common operation is reading the data of a specified resource given its `id`. The FHIR `read` operation is used by sending an HTTP `GET` request.

Medplum also provides the `readResource` helper function as a part of the `MedplumClient`. This function takes a `resourceType` and `id` of the resource you would like to read.

### Usage in Different Contexts
- Typescript
- CLI
- cURL

```ts
await medplum.readResource('Patient', 'homer-simpson');
```

```bash
medplum get Patient/homer-simpson
```

```bash
curl 'https://api.medplum.com/fhir/R4/Patient/homer-simpson' \
  -H 'authorization: Bearer $ACCESS_TOKEN' \
  -H 'content-type: application/fhir+json' \
```

### Reading a Deleted Resource
If you attempt to read a resource with an `id` that does not exist, you will receive a status code of `404 Not Found`. However, if you search for a resource that has been deleted you will receive a status code of `410 Gone`.

### Reading Multiple Resources
If you want to read multiple resources, you should use Medplum's search functionality. For more info see the [Search Basics docs](/content/docs/search/basic-search/index.html)