Quality and integration of public health information systems: A systematic review focused on immunization and vital records systems

Abstract

Objectives:Public health professionals rely on quantitative data for the daily practice of public health as well as organizational decision making and planning. However, several factors work against effective data sharing among public health agencies in the US. This review characterizes the reported barriers and enablers of effective use of public health IS from an informatics perspective.Methods:A systematic review of the English language literature for 2005 to 2011 followed the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) format. The review focused on immunization information systems (IIS) and vital records information systems (VRIS). Systems were described according to the structural aspects of IS integration and data quality.Results:Articles describing IIS documented issues pertaining to the distribution of the system, the autonomy of the data providers, the heterogeneous nature of information sharing as well as the quality of the data. Articles describing VRIS were focused much more heavily on data quality, particularly whether or not the data were free from errors.Conclusions:For state and local practitioners to effectively utilize data, public health IS will have to overcome the challenges posed by a large number of autonomous data providers utilizing a variety of technologies.

Characteristics of Local Health Departments Associated with Implementation of Electronic Health Records and other Informatics Systems

“…Public health agencies often struggle with issues of data integration, data quality, and effective data exchange with other public health agencies and health-care organizations, which are potential barriers to uptake. 35,39 Our study also shows that staffing, financial, and geographic factors are also highly correlated with differential uptake of various informatics programs. Although geography is not modifiable from an LHD's perspective, greater focus on training existing staff members and leveraging existing clinical systems and demand for direct services to support the work of public health are modifiable behaviors.…”

Experience of Using Information Systems in Public Health Practice: Findings from a Qualitative Study

“…Our small sample may not be nationally representative of the experiences of practitioners, where IS and data quality issues may be common [6,7,12]. We also acknowledge that or perspective on data sharing is limited; we have no data from the SHA perspective.…”

Factors Related to Public Health Data Sharing between Local and State Health Departments

“…Organizational size is well understood as a key variable associated with many health care practices and outcomes. Similarly, the challenge posed by increasing the number of data sources to integrate, or system distribution (Hasselbring 2000), may increase the likelihood of a data sharing gap (Vest, Kirk, and Issel 2012).…”