Abstract
Given the shift in current healthcare trends toward digitization of storing information, there has been an increase in the number of studies using administrative databases. These databases provide a powerful tool to conduct research on outcomes, health services, and epidemiology. However, these databases have limitations and biases that should be considered. Given the sensitive information regarding patients’ health in the database, security clearances must be granted before data is accessed. Furthermore, algorithms to link the different variables to create a cohort of people with specific disease are imperfect and may not yield an accurate representation. Due to a large volume of records, a statistically significant finding may be observed, but may provide insignificant clinical results. Despite the current limitations, administrative databases provide powerful data that researchers can use to identify gaps in performance to improve the healthcare system.
Highlights
Given the shift in current healthcare trends toward digitization of storing information, there has been an increase in the number of studies using administrative databases
Researchers at Institute for Clinical Evaluative Sciences (ICES), for example, continuously publish articles regarding wait times, health outcomes, health services and other articles that are of importance to the general public regarding the current healthcare system.[3]
Canadian Institute for Health Information (CIHI) allows graduate students working on a project using administrative databases to request access through the Graduate Student Data Access Program (GSDAP).[9]
Summary
Given the shift in current healthcare trends toward digitization of storing information, there has been an increase in the number of studies using administrative databases.
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