Race-based data collection among COVID-19 inpatients: A retrospective chart review

Area of Science:

• Health Services Research
• Epidemiology
• Health Equity

Background:

• Public health data indicate significant COVID-19 disparities in morbidity and mortality among racialized populations.
• Limited hospital inpatient data hinders research into racial disproportionality within healthcare settings.
• Understanding these disparities requires robust data on patient race and ethnicity.

Purpose of the Study:

• To determine the percentage of inpatients with formal race or ethnicity assessments in their medical records.
• To evaluate the adequacy of race and ethnicity data collection in a tertiary hospital setting.
• To identify barriers to studying racial health disparities among hospitalized patients.

Main Methods:

• Retrospective cross-sectional study of inpatients at an Ontario tertiary hospital (March-October 2020).
• Inclusion of patients with COVID-19 and a comparable reference group of general medicine inpatients without COVID-19.
• Review of medical records for formal race and ethnicity assessments.

Main Results:

• Formal ethnicity assessments were recorded for 44% of COVID-19 inpatients and 49% of the reference group.
• Race and ethnicity data collection was documented in less than 50% of all studied inpatients.
• Significant gaps exist in systematic race and ethnicity data capture in hospital records.

Conclusions:

• Current race and ethnicity data collection in hospitals is inadequate for comprehensive research on health disparities.
• Improved data collection strategies are essential to accurately assess and address racial inequities in inpatient care.
• Further research is needed to understand and mitigate racial disparities in health outcomes.