From data to population health policy: Student evaluation of a PopHR using the Omaha System

Background/Issue

To support health policy improvements, methods are needed to measure and monitor population health. No single sector alone can improve the health of a population. Public health, social services, school systems, clinical settings, and businesses must cooperate to measure and share data regarding the health of individuals, communities, and systems. Such an interoperable data system has been conceptualized as a population health record (PopHR): a system of assimilating information and statistics from diverse data sets and sources to provide a comprehensive view of population health for research, evaluation, and decision making.

Description

PHN graduate students explored the value of the PopHR concept using an academic electronic health record based on an ontological framework and interface terminology that enabled data interoperability (the Omaha System). Students mapped data from the selected individual, community, and system variables to the three components of the Omaha System, then aggregated and exported their combined data and conducted an analysis of the resulting population health dataset.

Lessons Learned

Problems such as Mental health, Pain, and Abuse were common across populations, raising important clinical and social issues that are applicable across settings. Students reported gaining competence in interoperability and analysis of population data from various sources using a clinical standard, and insight into potential solutions for development of a PopHR.

Implications/recommendations

PHN student use of a prototype PopHR demonstrated learning about population health measurement across settings and populations. Further research is needed to evaluate such a PopHR for communication, timeliness, and use of actual population health information.