Abstract
ObjectiveThe potential for data collected in general practice to be linked and used to address health system challenges of maintaining quality care, accessibility and safety, including pandemic support, has led to an increased interest in public acceptability of data sharing, however practitioners have rarely been asked to share their opinions on the topic. This paper attempts to gain an understanding of general practitioners’ perceptions on routinely sharing practice data for both population health planning and healthcare research both from an Australian and international perspective.Materials and MethodsA mixed methods approach combining an initial online survey followed by face-to-face interviews (before and during COVID-19), designed to identify the barriers and facilitators to sharing data, were conducted on a representative sample of general practitioners across Western Australia (WA).ResultsEighty online surveys and ten face-to-face interviews with general practitioners were conducted from Nov 2020 – May 2021. Although respondents overwhelmingly identified the importance of population health research, their willingness to participate in data sharing programs was determined by a perception of trust associated with the organisation collecting and analysing shared data; a clearly defined purpose and process of collected data; including a governance structure providing confidence in the data sharing initiative simultaneously enabling a process of data sovereignty and autonomy.DiscussionResults indicate strong agreement around the importance of sharing patient’s medical data for population and health research and planning. Concerns pertaining to lack of trust, governance and secondary use of data continue to be a setback to data sharing with implications for primary care business models being raised.ConclusionTo further increase general practitioner’s confidence in sharing their clinical data, efforts should be directed towards implementing a robust data governance structure with an emphasis on transparency and representative stakeholder inclusion as well as identifying the role of government and government funded organisations, as well as building trust with the entities collecting and analysing the data.
ACCEPTANCE OF CLINICAL DATA REPOSITORIES BY GENERAL PRACTITIONERS
