A recent study by VAHI’s Centre for Victorian Data linkage (CVDL) team has found that routinely linking pathology data to the existing Integrated Data Resource (IDR) is feasible, paving the way for new public health research projects drawing on linked data in Victoria.
Victoria has a particularly complex public pathology system compared to other states, with eight public pathology providers, plus St Vincent’s Pathology and two public reference laboratories.
The CVDL undertook the study into the feasibility of linking data from these various providers, supported by funding from the Population Health Research Network.
CVDL was assisted by a project advisory group with representation from the research community, public pathology providers, and areas of the Department of Health including Public Health, Pathology Reform and Digital Health.
The study concluded routine linkage of pathology data is feasible, with public health research projects identified as the strongest use case due to specific legislation supporting data sharing for public health protection.
VAHI CEO Dr Lance Emerson said the addition of pathology data to the IDR would be a boon for health research in Victoria.
“Including pathology data for specific projects greatly expands the capacity of the IDR to provide a complete picture of people’s health journeys and system interactions,” Dr Emerson said. “This in turn supports more targeted initiatives and reforms that can improve healthcare for all Victorians.”
The next steps for the project are to work through a range of governance and technical questions, including understanding the legal basis for sharing and linking pathology data, the pathways by which data could be ingested, the volume of data being linked, and the standardisation and interoperability of data from a range of sources.
Following from this, the CVDL will look to run a pilot linkage with one public pathology provider for a specific public health use case.
The CVDL will also continue to work with the Pathology Reform team to explore synergies and realise shared benefits, including the opportunity to build in technical and governance structures that will support data sharing and linkage.
For more information about the pathology data linkage study or anything else to do with the CVDL, please contact Sharon Williams, Specialist Manager, Centre for Victorian Data Linkage, at [email protected]