Austrian Health Information System

Summary

Strengths: The database comprises almost all data sources on in-patient health and care systems in Austria (presentable via tables, graphs and maps), and geographical disaggregation is at the municipal level. Weaknesses: As of yet, data on out-patient care and services are not captured in the database; Individual datasets within ÖGIS cannot be linked.

Type of data

Data Source
Other, please specify

Type of Study
Other: The ÖGIS is a database, which contains data from numerous and wide-ranging national registries and surveys. It was explicitly created to provide rapid, regional, epidemiological data analysis, which spans the entire health system to the Ministry of Health, in order to create reports and for health planning purposes.

Data gathering method
Other: Database is fed data from Statistik Austria, social insurance institutions, Federal Ministry of Health (BMG), Federal Ministry of Defence and Sports (BMLVS), several research institutions and other providers of data.

Access to data

Conditions of access

Type of available data (e.g. anonymised microdata, aggregated tables, etc.)
Aggregate data (according to data protection regulations in Austria)

Formats available
Standard formats (MS-Excel, SQL-Tables, JPEG for maps)

Coverage

Coverage Years of collection, reference years, and sample sizes
Data collection ongoing since 1993 (in addition REGIS created by 2000 as ÖGIS' internet platform accessible to the public). The sample covers the entire population of Austria (everyone who has been captured in the registries, censuses, and surveys of government and research institutions).

First year of collection
Maximum observation period based on available data in ÖGIS: 1980-2012

Stratification if applicable
By age and sex with respect to the population

Base used for sampling

Geographical coverage and breakdowns
There are five levels of regional data resolution: 2,300 municipalities (population ranging from 100 to 200,000 inhabitants); 121 districts (population ranging from 10,000 to 200,000 inhabitants); 35 NUTSIII-regions (NUTS-III-level of Eurostat, population ranging from 30,000 inhabitants to 1.5 million inhabitants); 9 provinces (NUTS-II-level of EUROSTAT, population ranging from 200,000 to 1.5 million inhabitants); and the national level

Age range
No specified age range

Statistical representativeness
Other, please specify

Coverage of main and cross-cutting topics
Data collected on life expectancy, mortality, cancer incidence, hospital stays, self-reported health, and on different health care sectors like acute care, rehabilitative care, old-age homes, outpatient care, mobile care. Corresponds to Health and Performance, Wellbeing, Social Systems and Welfare Topics

Linkage

Standardisation
Direct standardization for age

Possibility of linkage among databases
Individual datasets cannot be linked within ÖGIS, but may be displayed according to, e.g. postal codes.

Data quality

Entry errors if applicable
There are no entry errors because all data are pre-checked before integration into the ÖGIS database.

Breaks
None, except HIS (not available for each year)

Consistency of terminology or coding used during collection
Mostly consistent according to international databases by WHO, OECD and EU

Governance

Contact information
Gerhard Fülöp and Anton Hlava/Health Austria (GÖG)
Austrian Health Institute (ÖBIG)
Stubenring 6
1010 Vienna Austria Phone: Gerhard Fülöp: +43151561163
Email: gerhard.fueloep(at)goeg.at / anton.hlava(at)goeg.at
Url: Aggregate data tables available from REGIS (Regional Health Information System), a database that is part of the much larger ÖGIS, and publicises selected indicators: http://regis.goeg.at/

Timeliness, transparency
The data are continuously updated; latest report to the Ministry of Health available for 2012.