Question: What is GRHANITE ?
GRHANITE® is a technological tool enabling de-identified data transfer and linkage. GRHANITE’s privacy-protected record linkage enables investigation of the onset and progression of disease, care pathways, and patient outcomes which is critical information for the successful implementation of the RAd health trial. To find out more click here.
Question: What info is GRHANITE extracting?
- After receiving consent from the practice, the GRHANITE program extracts data clinic-wide on a weekly basis. This works much like an EMR audit. We are interested in clinic-wide data so we can measure the impact of the trial and rebate payments on patient outcomes—this includes consultation information found in progress notes. We are also interested in how consultations are billed. This helps us understand how rebates change the way practices bill consultations. Patients also attend different GPs in the same practice, and we are more likely to capture all of their data this way.
- All patient and clinician information is de-identified at the clinic level before it leaves the clinic (i.e. before it reaches the GRHANITE data repository) from both the intervention and control practices. The GRHANITE program is secure and holds the information securely. The research team is only given data that is relevant to the RAd Health trial.
Question: Who can see the information stored in GRHANITE?
- The data is curated by a professional health informatics team at the University of Melbourne and operates under strict data stewardship mechanisms, data governance framework, standard operating procedures, and University cybersecurity oversight. The data is held within a secure data enclave that has strict controls over access. Data cannot be used or viewed out-with the enclave (for example web access is not permitted when undertaking research on the data – everything is quarantined)
- Users need to go through a strict application process including review of ethics and the research qualifications of the researcher. Only approved researchers with appropriate training are permitted access.
Question: Whose/what information is being extracted?
- Patient information (de-identified) NB Patients can opt out if Best Practice used (tick box re no permission for 3rd party use of data).
- Provider information (de-identified with a mechanism to allow practice re-identification of GPs where they have provided the consent to do so)
- Visit information (if a billed health assessment)
Question: Do practices/clinicians have to consent to having their info extracted?
- Yes. The practice must consent at the start of the study for data extraction. The entire clinic is included in the weekly audit, but only the de-identified information relevant to RAd will be delivered to the research team. The GP consent relates to the surveys and any other optional tasks such as telephone interviews, as well as the rebate payment if in the intervention group. The GP consent also acknowledges understanding that weekly data will be extracted from the practice, but the practice manager consent relates to allowing data to be extracted.
- If a GP has not consented to participate in RAd, their de-identified patient visit information will still be included in the extraction. The RAd Health trial monitors whether the profile of patients changes at the practice, and if we only received data from consented GPs and from those practices in the intervention group, the trial results would be very biased.
- GPs cannot opt out of the data from their patients being downloaded.
Question: What if a nurse completes the assessment? How is this information recorded/accessed?
All data recorded in the progress notes will be extracted using GRHANITE, regardless of whether it is supplied by a nurse or a GP.
See the document below for more detailed information about GRHANITE