Linking fathers and children in administrative data for public health research: a systematic scoping review

Abstract

BackgroundGrowing evidence on the inter-related health trajectories of mothers and their children is supported by linked, routinely collected, administrative data held by the UK National Health Service and government departments. A similar evidence base for fathers is hindered by the scarcity of necessary information held in maternity or birth records in England. We conducted a scoping review to develop a conceptual model of dimensions of fatherhood, identify and categorise the methods used for linking fathers with their children in administrative data for public health research, and map these methods onto the dimensions of fatherhood. MethodsWe developed a framework of social fathering by integrating the key components from relevant theoretical models and empirical studies. We searched PubMed, Scopus, and Google Scholar for articles published between Jan 1, 2000, and Dec 31, 2020, from countries belonging to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development that link fathers' and children's records in administrative data. Search terms included: “father” and “administrative data” or “record linkage”. Studies were excluded if child outcomes were measured after the age of 18 years. FindingsWe identified 77 studies that quantified the association between paternal exposures and child health and development outcomes, using linked administrative data on fathers and their children. Four methods have been used globally to link fathers and children across vital statistics, health, social care, education, and justice records. These methods are based on personal identity numbers (PINs) for national identification, address or household identifiers, information found on birth registrations, or health claims. InterpretationTo our knowledge, this review is the first to identify linkage methods used for father-child pairs using routinely collected records and to present the range of paternal exposures and child outcomes studied using administrative data. We mapped what we can learn from these linkages to the dimensions of fatherhood. However, significant assumptions are made when using linkage methods as proxies for paternal involvement. Currently, there is no way to link fathers and children's health data at the population level in England and, therefore, changes in practice are required to facilitate father-child linkage. To advance fatherhood research for child and family public health, we recommend routinely recording paternal National Health Service numbers as part of hospital birth notifications. FundingUCL Grand Challenges and the Medical Research Council.