Volume 199 - Issue 4
The Bettering the Evaluation and Care of Health (BEACH) program: where to from here?
Authors: Helena C Britt and Graeme C Miller
Med J Aust 2013; 199 (4): 240. || doi: 10.5694/mja13.10460
Published online: 2 September 2013
Published online: 2 September 2013
In reply: Weekes agrees that better health data standards are needed, and suggests that MedicineInsight can gather valid data from current general practice electronic health records, to provide meaningful information.
We have gathered representative data on general practice patient management through the Bettering the Evaluation and Care of Health (BEACH) program and earlier surveys for 20 years.1,2 In parallel we have worked to develop data standards with ...
In reply: Weekes agrees that better health data standards are needed, and suggests that MedicineInsight can gather valid data from current general practice electronic health records, to provide meaningful information.
We have gathered representative data on general practice patient management through the Bettering the Evaluation and Care of Health (BEACH) program and earlier surveys for 20 years.1,2 In parallel we have worked to develop data standards with many national and international bodies. There is international consensus that data structure and information standards are essential to quality data collection, and to improve interoperability between systems for better and safer patient care.
In spite of substantial funding (more than $16 million over 4 years),3 if these wider issues are ignored, the validity of data collected will be questionable, and MedicineInsight will not improve patient care and safety at a broader community level.
We wish NPS MedicineWise well in this endeavour, but contend that due to the lack of standards in health data, it is currently almost impossible to turn downloaded data into valid information.
NPS MedicineWise is required to allow researchers access to MedicineInsight data.3 We look forward to studying the data and comparing the results with those from BEACH.
Competing interests
No relevant disclosures.
References
- Britt H, Miller GC, Charles J, et al. A decade of Australian general practice activity 2002–03 to 2011–12. General practice series no. 32. Sydney: Sydney University Press, 2012. 0_BABFFFEF
- Bridges-Webb C, Britt H, Miles DA, et al. Morbidity and treatment in general practice in Australia 1990–1991. Med J Aust 1992; 157: s1-s56. 0_i1142868
- National Prescribing Service. NPS budget announcement [media release]. 11 May 2011. http://www.nps.org.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0009/125964/Budget_media_release_2011_05_11_FINAL.pdf (accessed Apr 2013).