Nordic recommendations on the quality of data and the usability of systems
The Nordic Council of Ministers eHealth Standardisation group has published recommendations on how standards should be used to support the usability of information systems and the quality of data in healthcare. The recommendations have been prepared in Nordic collaboration between 2022 and 2024.
Improving the quality of healthcare and social welfare data for different purposes has been highlighted in the development of information management in the past few years. The quality of the data is also a central theme in the development work carried out in the Sustainable Growth Programme for Finland (RRP), in which THL and the wellbeing services counties are involved. The needs highlighted through the network launched for the development of data entry and the quality of data in the programme have also been taken into account in the now published recommendations.
According to the results of several studies and surveys, improvements are needed in the usability of the information systems used by healthcare and social welfare professionals. The reuse of data also imposes requirements on data entry and the data structures of the systems. Reconciling theses requirements with the smooth use of the systems has proved to be challenging. Reducing the workload of professionals who produce and use the data has been identified as an important development area internationally, as well.
Standards are one way of ensuring the availability and interoperability of healthcare and social welfare data. The new recommendations focus on how the usability of the systems and the quality of the data should be taken into account in the development and utilisation of eHealth standards. The recommendations aim to support several different actors, such as the developers of the systems, the organisations using the systems, national authorities and the developers of the standards.
“The new recommendations lay down the basis for improving the quality of the data and taking into account the usability of the systems more systematically in different countries,” says Juha Mykkänen, Chief Specialist at THL and a member of the Nordic editorial group for the recommendations.
“In addition to the availability and structure of the data, more attention should also be paid to the quality of the data and to ensuring that smooth use of the systems is taken into account during the whole life cycle of the data,” Mykkänen says. “The same challenges have been identified in different Nordic countries, and the development of smarter systems requires collaboration of many parties as well as utilisation of best practices and readily-made models,” Mykkänen emphasises.
Finland chairs the Nordic Council of Ministers eHealth group in 2023 and 2024. The eHealth Standards subgroup of the Nordic group has previously produced surveys and recommendations on issues such as e-service use, self-care and the use of standards that support interoperability in the Nordic countries.
The publication including the recommendations is available on the website of the Nordic Council of Ministers: Supporting the healthcare professionals' work and data quality through e-Health standards (norden.org)
More on the subject
- Nordic Council of Ministers (norden.org)
- Sustainable Growth Programme for Finland (link in Finnish) (thl.fi)
Further information:
Juha Mykkänen
Chief Specialist
juha.mykkanen(at)thl.fi
