Data project

Netherlands information network of primary care

Landelijk Informatienetwerk Huisartsen (LINH)

Summary

Strengths: Registry provides information on a patient level. Weaknesses: The database is, however, not integral.

Type of data

Data Source
Registry

Type of Study
Crosssection regular

Data gathering method
Registries

Access to data

Conditions of access
Data cannot be downloaded directly.

Type of available data (e.g. anonymised microdata, aggregated tables, etc.)
Anonymised microdata

Formats available
SPSS (default)

Coverage

Coverage Years of collection, reference years, and sample sizes
Data regarding diagnoses was first collected between 2002 and 2010; data regarding contacts was first collected between 2006 and 2010. The sample size used was 84 practices and around 350,000 individuals. For both cases, data collection is ongoing and is scheduled to continue at some point in the future (data collected in 2011 should be released in May/June 2013).

First year of collection
2002

Stratification if applicable
Not applicable

Base used for sampling

Geographical coverage and breakdowns
Patients of GP-practices. (nearly whole population)

Age range
No age restrictions

Statistical representativeness
Special group, please specify

Coverage of main and cross-cutting topics
Detailed study of: General Practitioner (GP) visits, frequency, diagnosis, prescriptions, referrals.

Linkage

Standardisation

Possibility of linkage among databases
Limited linkage key: about 85% of patients can be linked

Data quality

Entry errors if applicable

Breaks

Consistency of terminology or coding used during collection
Consistent time series

Governance

Contact information
Department of Health and Health Care
Statistics Netherlands
Henri Faasdreef 312
2492 JP Den Haag Netherlands Phone: Infoservice: 003188 570 70 70
Email: info(at)cbs.nl
Url:

Timeliness, transparency
Data is collected annually.