WA Family Connections Project

Background

The WA Family Connections (Genealogical) Project was initiated in 2003. The aim is to connect the health history profiles of related individuals through the incorporation of an additional system of linkages that represent genealogical relationships as defined on birth, death and marriage registrations.

Phase 1: Creation of genealogical links from all available electronic registrations (from 1974 for births, 1984 for deaths, and 1984 for marriages).

Phase2: Encoding and linkage of earlier registrations currently held as paper records.

The Family Connections project is governed and managed using the protocols and procedures developed for the WA Data Linkage Project, which are accepted as international best practice.

Research capabilities

The publication of the sequence of the human genome has advanced prospects for identifying genes responsible for complex disease. The identification of such genes will help to define individuals at risk, improve preventative medicine, and tailor treatments to specific genetic profiles. Understanding the inheritance of complex disease requires the combination of genealogical information and health data. Population-based cohorts considerably improve the estimation of disease risks associated with particular genes. Western Australia, due to its demonstrated record linkage capabilities and recent addition of genealogical properties, is able to make a unique contribution to estimate genetic risk and gene-environment interactions on a population level. The WA Family Connections Genealogy project can be used in combination with the established WA Data Linkage System to support large-scale human genome research.

For further information, contact:

email: Emma.Glasson@health.wa.gov.au