The challenge:

Over 80% of Australians see their GPs each year, making the information held in general practice (GP) the most comprehensive record of the health of all Australians.

The project aims to answer the question: ‘How can we enhance public confidence in the secondary use of general practice data for research purposes?’

GP data are an important resource for researchers, policymakers and planners. In recent years, initiatives to harness “the largest and most comprehensive electronic database” on the health of the Australian population have exploded. There are now over 100 primary care datasets available in Australia. 

However, these datasets are not being used to their full potential. Alongside technical reasons related to poor data quality and the lack of standardisation of and interoperability between clinical software tools, “fear, reticence and lack of trust” amongst GPs and patients is the most frequently cited reason. In addition, legal and policy frameworks in Australia are poorly suited to support the use of general practice data for research.