In an effort to allow our researchers to pursue the maximum utility of their data collected through the OBI-funded Integrated Discovery Programs, we are implementing the capability to link research and clinical data with health administration data.
The methodology that we have put in place allows this linkage of data to be carried out without the transfer of health card numbers to OBI or Brain-CODE. A secure algorithm is used to encrypt health card numbers at the point of collection and entry into the browser at the research institutions, which then only transfer the encrypted number to Brain-CODE. Therefore OBI never receives health card numbers and cannot decrypt the health card numbers. This linking of datasets using encrypted health card numbers will enable investigators on Brain-CODE to access aggregated datasets for a much richer scientific profile of their participants for research.