Democratising data to address health system inequities in Australia
Understanding the health status of a population or community is crucial to equitable service planning. Among other uses, data on health status can help local and national planners and policy makers understand patterns and trends in current or emerging health and well-being, especially how disparitie...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
BMJ Publishing Group
2023-05-01
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| Series: | BMJ Global Health |
| Online Access: | https://gh.bmj.com/content/8/5/e012094.full |
| _version_ | 1797825236713865216 |
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| author | Fintan Thompson Sarah Larkins Stephanie M Topp Ruth Barker Karen Johnston Nishila Moodley Alexandra Edelman Deborah Smith Malcolm McDonald Maxine Whittaker Christopher Rouen |
| author_facet | Fintan Thompson Sarah Larkins Stephanie M Topp Ruth Barker Karen Johnston Nishila Moodley Alexandra Edelman Deborah Smith Malcolm McDonald Maxine Whittaker Christopher Rouen |
| author_sort | Fintan Thompson |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Understanding the health status of a population or community is crucial to equitable service planning. Among other uses, data on health status can help local and national planners and policy makers understand patterns and trends in current or emerging health and well-being, especially how disparities relating to geography, ethnicity, language and living with disability influence access to services. In this practice paper we draw attention to the nature of Australia’s health data challenges and call for greater ‘democratisation’ of health data to address health system inequities. Democratisation implies the need for greater quality and representativeness of health data as well as improved access and usability that enable health planners and researchers to respond to health and health service disparities efficiently and cost-effectively. We draw on learnings from two practice examples, marred by inaccessibility, reduced interoperability and limited representativeness. We call for renewed and urgent attention to, and investment in, improved data quality and usability for all levels of health, disability and related service delivery in Australia. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-13T10:51:03Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-327216f3e32e45a380e7a0119d5d015f |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2059-7908 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-13T10:51:03Z |
| publishDate | 2023-05-01 |
| publisher | BMJ Publishing Group |
| record_format | Article |
| series | BMJ Global Health |
| spelling | doaj.art-327216f3e32e45a380e7a0119d5d015f2023-05-17T14:30:06ZengBMJ Publishing GroupBMJ Global Health2059-79082023-05-018510.1136/bmjgh-2023-012094Democratising data to address health system inequities in AustraliaFintan Thompson0Sarah Larkins1Stephanie M Topp2Ruth Barker3Karen Johnston4Nishila Moodley5Alexandra Edelman6Deborah Smith7Malcolm McDonald8Maxine Whittaker9Christopher Rouen10College of Public Health, Medicine and Veterinary Sciences, James Cook University, Cairns, QLD, AustraliaCollege of Medicine and Dentistry, James Cook University, Townsville, Queensland, AustraliaCollege of Public Health, Medical and Veterinary Sciences, James Cook University, Townsville, Queensland, AustraliaCollege of Healthcare Sciences, James Cook University, Cairns, Queensland, AustraliaConcussion Management Program Athletic Edge Sports Medicine, Toronto, CanadaTownsville Public Health Unit, Townsville Hospital and Health Service, Townsville, Queensland, AustraliaCollege of Public Health, Medical and Veterinary Sciences, James Cook University, Townsville, Queensland, Australia1 Barts Health NHS TrustprofessorCollege of Public Health, Medical and Veterinary Sciences, James Cook University, Townsville, Queensland, AustraliaCollege of Public Health, Medical and Veterinary Sciences, James Cook University, Townsville, Queensland, AustraliaUnderstanding the health status of a population or community is crucial to equitable service planning. Among other uses, data on health status can help local and national planners and policy makers understand patterns and trends in current or emerging health and well-being, especially how disparities relating to geography, ethnicity, language and living with disability influence access to services. In this practice paper we draw attention to the nature of Australia’s health data challenges and call for greater ‘democratisation’ of health data to address health system inequities. Democratisation implies the need for greater quality and representativeness of health data as well as improved access and usability that enable health planners and researchers to respond to health and health service disparities efficiently and cost-effectively. We draw on learnings from two practice examples, marred by inaccessibility, reduced interoperability and limited representativeness. We call for renewed and urgent attention to, and investment in, improved data quality and usability for all levels of health, disability and related service delivery in Australia.https://gh.bmj.com/content/8/5/e012094.full |
| spellingShingle | Fintan Thompson Sarah Larkins Stephanie M Topp Ruth Barker Karen Johnston Nishila Moodley Alexandra Edelman Deborah Smith Malcolm McDonald Maxine Whittaker Christopher Rouen Democratising data to address health system inequities in Australia BMJ Global Health |
| title | Democratising data to address health system inequities in Australia |
| title_full | Democratising data to address health system inequities in Australia |
| title_fullStr | Democratising data to address health system inequities in Australia |
| title_full_unstemmed | Democratising data to address health system inequities in Australia |
| title_short | Democratising data to address health system inequities in Australia |
| title_sort | democratising data to address health system inequities in australia |
| url | https://gh.bmj.com/content/8/5/e012094.full |
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