Health services research using linked records: who consents and what is the gain?

OBJECTIVE

To assess consent to record linkage, describe the characteristics of consenters and compare self-report versus Medicare records of general practitioner use.

METHOD

Almost 40,000 women in the Australian Longitudinal Study on Women's Health were sent a request by mail for permission to link their Medicare records and survey data.

RESULTS

19,700 women consented: 37% of young (18-23 years), 59% of mid-age (45-50 years) and 53% of older women (70-75 years). Consenters tended to have higher levels of education and, among the older cohort, were in better health than non-consenters. Women tended to under-report the number of visits to general practitioners.

CONCLUSIONS

Record linkage of survey and Medicare data on a large scale is feasible. The linked data provide information on health and socio-economic status which are valuable for understanding health service utilisation.

IMPLICATIONS

Linked records provide a powerful tool for health care research, particularly in longitudinal studies.