Health services research and data linkages: issues, methods, and directions for the future

Area of Science:

• Health Services Research
• Data Science
• Health Informatics

Background:

• Effective health services and policy research necessitates complete, accurate, and timely patient and organizational data.
• Current data infrastructure presents gaps, hindering comprehensive research efforts.

Purpose of the Study:

• To describe methods for linking administrative and health records, including electronic medical records.
• To facilitate comparative effectiveness and health services research through data integration.

Main Methods:

• Categorization of data linkage agents into individual investigators, government-sponsored databases, and public-private partnerships.
• Discussion of challenges in data linkage and benefits of combining secondary with primary data sources.
• Illustration of data linkage concepts using cancer care research.

Main Results:

• Fostering collaboration among institutions, researchers, and public/private health sectors is essential to address data infrastructure gaps.
• Without collaborative efforts, a fragmented and costly system with limited access is likely to persist.
• Development and support of information technologies are vital for realizing the research potential of clinical and transactional data.

Conclusions:

• Investments in data infrastructure are cost-effective, despite budget and technical challenges.
• Such investments are critical for health care system reform and monitoring reform initiatives.
• Enhanced data linkage capabilities will ultimately benefit the patient population through improved research outcomes.