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Data Linkage WA

Data Linkage WA at the Department of Health collaborates with the Centre for Health Services Research at the University of Western Australia, the Division of Health Sciences at Curtin University of Technology, and the Telethon Institute for Child Health Research to provide information for valuable medical and population health research.

The unit was established in 1995 to develop and maintain a system of linkages connecting data about health events for individuals in WA. The unit manages the Western Australian Data Linkage System which links the WA's core population health data sets. Operations depend on access to personal identifying information derived from each of the contributing data sources, but the actual health details are stored and managed separately by delegated data custodians. These linkages are created and maintained using rigorous, internationally accepted privacy preserving protocols, probabilistic matching and extensive clerical review.Health data can be requested for ethically approved research, planning and evaluation projects which aim to improve the health of Western Australians.