Using data linkage methodologies to augment healthcare-associated infection surveillance data

Area of Science:

• Public Health Surveillance
• Infectious Disease Epidemiology
• Health Informatics

Background:

• Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) surveillance is evolving rapidly.
• Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) poses a significant public health challenge.
• Traditional surveillance methods may benefit from integration with administrative data.

Purpose of the Study:

• To assess the value of linking infection prevention and control surveillance data with hospital discharge abstract data (DAD).
• To characterize hospital-acquired (HA) and community-acquired (CA) MRSA cases using linked data.
• To evaluate a novel data linkage methodology for AMR surveillance in Canada.

Main Methods:

• Linked inpatient MRSA surveillance data with DAD for adult patients in Calgary (2011-2017).
• Utilized Personal Health Number (PHN) and gender for individual identification and admission date for validation.
• Employed descriptive statistics to differentiate HA-MRSA and CA-MRSA cases.

Main Results:

• Achieved a high linkage success rate (94.6%) between surveillance records and DAD.
• Identified key differences between HA-MRSA and CA-MRSA patient populations through data linkage.
• Demonstrated that linked data can augment and enhance baseline surveillance information.

Conclusions:

• This study is the first in Canada to link AMR surveillance data with an administrative population database.
• Data linkage represents a significant methodological advancement for AMR surveillance.
• Future data linkage with primary care, social, and biological data could further refine AMR insights.