Research output: Contribution to journal/Conference contribution in journal/Contribution to newspaper › Review › Research › peer-review
The Danish health care system and epidemiological research: from health care contacts to database records. / Schmidt, Morten; Schmidt, Sigrun Alba Johannesdottir; Adelborg, Kasper; Sundbøll, Jens; Laugesen, Kristina; Ehrenstein, Vera; Sørensen, Henrik Toft.
In: Clinical epidemiology, Vol. 11, 2019, p. 563-591.Research output: Contribution to journal/Conference contribution in journal/Contribution to newspaper › Review › Research › peer-review
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TY - JOUR
T1 - The Danish health care system and epidemiological research: from health care contacts to database records
AU - Schmidt, Morten
AU - Schmidt, Sigrun Alba Johannesdottir
AU - Adelborg, Kasper
AU - Sundbøll, Jens
AU - Laugesen, Kristina
AU - Ehrenstein, Vera
AU - Sørensen, Henrik Toft
PY - 2019
Y1 - 2019
N2 - Denmark has a large network of population-based medical databases, which routinely collect high-quality data as a by-product of health care provision. The Danish medical databases include administrative, health, and clinical quality databases. Understanding the full research potential of these data sources requires insight into the underlying health care system. This review describes key elements of the Danish health care system from planning and delivery to record generation. First, it presents the history of the health care system, its overall organization and financing. Second, it details delivery of primary, hospital, psychiatric, and elderly care. Third, the path from a health care contact to a database record is followed. Finally, an overview of the available data sources is presented. This review discusses the data quality of each type of medical database and describes the relative technical ease and cost-effectiveness of exact individual-level linkage among them. It is shown, from an epidemiological point of view, how Denmark's population represents an open dynamic cohort with complete long-term follow-up, censored only at emigration or death. It is concluded that Denmark's constellation of universal health care, long-standing routine registration of most health and life events, and the possibility of exact individual-level data linkage provides unlimited possibilities for epidemiological research.
AB - Denmark has a large network of population-based medical databases, which routinely collect high-quality data as a by-product of health care provision. The Danish medical databases include administrative, health, and clinical quality databases. Understanding the full research potential of these data sources requires insight into the underlying health care system. This review describes key elements of the Danish health care system from planning and delivery to record generation. First, it presents the history of the health care system, its overall organization and financing. Second, it details delivery of primary, hospital, psychiatric, and elderly care. Third, the path from a health care contact to a database record is followed. Finally, an overview of the available data sources is presented. This review discusses the data quality of each type of medical database and describes the relative technical ease and cost-effectiveness of exact individual-level linkage among them. It is shown, from an epidemiological point of view, how Denmark's population represents an open dynamic cohort with complete long-term follow-up, censored only at emigration or death. It is concluded that Denmark's constellation of universal health care, long-standing routine registration of most health and life events, and the possibility of exact individual-level data linkage provides unlimited possibilities for epidemiological research.
U2 - 10.2147/CLEP.S179083
DO - 10.2147/CLEP.S179083
M3 - Review
C2 - 31372058
VL - 11
SP - 563
EP - 591
JO - Clinical Epidemiology
JF - Clinical Epidemiology
SN - 1179-1349
ER -