Data Types

Common (traditional) Data Types

• demographics: age, sex, gender
• diagnoses: diagnosis, severity
• medications: prescription, dispense
• procedures: inpatient, outpatient
• surveys: questionnaire
• utilization: cost, hospitalization

Emerging Data Types

• Lab orders and values
• Vital signs: BMI, blood pressure
• Social data: income levels
• Patient-generated data: mobile health; patient-reported outcomes
• Other data: workflow data, environmental data, marketing data, etc.

Data Type Specs

When you obtain a certain type of data, you may need check many specs:

• Variables
• Background
• Derived variables
• Coding standards: common coding conventions for this data type
• Data sources
• Data quality
• Data interoperability
• Legal considerations

Date Sources

• Electronic health record (EHR)
• Population-level Data Sources

Data Challenges

• Data quality challenges
• Data linkage and integration challenges
• Data system architecture and design
• Data access, privacy and use challenges