A new project led by the University of Queensland aims to create a national data network to support the development of new solutions for the management of chronic diseases.
Recently, the National Infrastructure for Linked Learning in Digital Health (NINA) project received a grant of AU$6 million (US$3.9 million) from the Future Fund. federal government medical research. It also received an additional AU$7.7 million ($5 million) in contributions from UQ, Monash and Macquarie universities and the Queensland Network Infrastructure Fund.
WHAT IT’S ABOUT
The five-year project will allow researchers to use machine learning to access hidden information about debilitating chronic diseases, such as diabetes, rheumatoid arthritis, according to a press release. and osteoarthritis. It will prepare and harmonize data to global standards while protecting individual privacy. Analytics will also be created and shared between health organizations and states.
UQ will work with 23 Australian and global partners to co-design the conceptual framework for NINA and accelerate the translation and adoption of the data model at national scale.
WHY IT IMPORTANT
Researchers across Australia have difficulty accessing health databases and conducting their research on digital health.
Clair Sullivan, associate professor at UQ’s Queensland Center for Digital Health, said: “Australia has a great digital health record, but the data is hidden in health systems, preventing researchers from finding it. Talented Research accesses millions of records on treatments and trends in crippling chronic conditions.”
Chris Bain, Professor of Practice in Digital Health at Monash University’s Department of IT, says many restrictions on privacy and data sharing hinder meaningful use of such databases.
“This has ultimately led to an almost insurmountable divide between healthcare sectors, including the lack of data connectivity between primary, primary and secondary care,” he said in a separate statement. second and third grade.
The NINA project intends to “put data to work” to find solutions to better manage chronic conditions. “Rather than trying to merge disparate data sets to enable centralized machine learning, the project will bring machine learning to the data,” added Sullivan.
TREND TO BIGGER WOMAN
Despite the will to pursue digital transformation using data and analytics, most healthcare organizations across Australia and New Zealand lack the ability to share them, according to a recent study. real-time data sharing and integration of different systems. The study was commissioned by InterSystems. They are also analyzing a limited amount of data even though there is a lot of it because many datasets cannot interact with each other.
However, most vendors want to standardize data exchange. The Australian Digital Health Authority is helping with this through the National Health Interoperability Plan, which envisions a more connected Australian health system by 2027.
As part of this effort, the agency recently partnered with Health Level Seven Australia to promote consistent application of domestic FHIR standards. It also linked up with CSIRO’s Australian Center for Electronic Health Research to create the National Clinical Terminology Service, which will provide terminology services and tools that enable system-wide connectivity. medical.
