Available information about ethnic disparities is based largely on misleading concepts of "race" that do not correspond to sociologically meaningful definitions of ethnicity. Some information relevant to the Latino population has become available with the introduction of Latino ethnic identifiers in vital records and some other standard sources of health-related information, but this information remains fragmented, inconsistent, incomplete or misleading in many respects. For all ethnic groups, interpretability and comparability remain problematic due to inconsistent definitions of ethnicity; lack of national origin data, poor quality control at the point of collection and failure to use bilingual interviewers and instruments, failure to publish breakdowns by national origin, non-comparability among data sources, inappropriate sampling frames, and inaccuracy in census data used for population normalization. The New England Coalition for Health Equity (NECHE) was established to study these problems regionally, and to develop and advocate for solutions. NECHE has reviewed 165 public health databases in the 6 New England states. The majority of them do not even collect data on Latino ethnicity, let alone any other categories. A detailed analysis of 68 Massachusetts databases found a bewildering variety of incompatible and often logically inappropriate systems of ethnic and racial classification. NECHE has proposed recommendations for consistent approaches and standards regarding ethnicity and other population characteristics in health data systems, and is developing regional initiatives to improve data systems and to understand and address health disparities.
Learning Objectives: Participants will be able to: Identify the concepts of race and ethnicity used in important public health data systems; Identify shortcomings in data quality, interpretability and comparability; Understand recommendations and action steps being taken to rectify inadequacy of ethnic identification in public health data systems
Keywords: Ethnic Identity, Data Collection
Presenting author's disclosure statement:
Organization/institution whose products or services will be discussed: New England Coalition for Health Equity
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.