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Data Resource Profile: The Enhanced Prescribing Database (EPD) in Northern Ireland
Emma Ross1,2, Janine Cooper1,2, Dermot O'Reilly1,3
1Administrative Data Research Centre Northern Ireland (ADRC NI), Queen's University Belfast, Northern Ireland.
International Journal of Population Data Science
|July 22, 2026
Summary
The Enhanced Prescribing Database (EPD) in Northern Ireland offers valuable data for health research. It securely captures detailed prescription information, enabling studies on drug use and prescribing practices.
Area of Science:
- Health Informatics
- Public Health Research
- Pharmaceutical Sciences
Background:
- The Enhanced Prescribing Database (EPD) is a key electronic resource in Northern Ireland, established in 2010.
- It captures comprehensive data on community pharmacy dispensed prescriptions for monitoring and research.
Purpose of the Study:
- To describe the structure, content, and accessibility of the Enhanced Prescribing Database (EPD).
- To highlight the EPD's utility for population-based health and social care research in Northern Ireland.
Main Methods:
- Prescription data is extracted from 2D barcodes submitted for reimbursement to the Health and Social Care Business Services Organisation (HSC BSO).
- Data is processed via the Electronic Prescription and Eligibility System (EPES) and stored in the EPD for research.
- Unique Health and Care Numbers (HCNs) facilitate data linkage, with direct identifiers anonymized for researcher access within the Health and Social Care Honest Broker Service (HSC HBS).
Main Results:
- The EPD contains over 44 million prescribed items annually, with high data quality (e.g., >99% product code population).
- Patient identifier capture rates have significantly improved, reaching 91.1% by 2024/25.
- Data is updated monthly and includes prescriber, patient demographic, and classification details.
Conclusions:
- The EPD provides a robust, de-identified dataset for diverse health research applications, including drug utilization and prescribing practice evaluations.
- Access is managed through the HSC HBS following approval by the Health and Social Care Data Access Committee (HSCDAC).
- Ongoing enhancements aim to improve data completeness and linkage capabilities.
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