Accessing Information Held by the Centre

The Centre for Health Information collects health information from a variety of sources, including health care facilities, pharmacies, and clinics, as well as government and research organizations. Health information contained in the Electronic Health Record (EHR) is mainly used by health care professionals to help make decisions when providing care to individuals. Information in other systems maintained by the Centre for Health Information, as well as the information found in the EHR, is used for a variety of other purposes, such as clinical program management, health system management, public health, research, and quality assurance.

On a regular basis, the Centre responds to external requests for health information. In general, requests fall into one of three categories:

Aggregate Information

Aggregate information, such as counts and percentages, is information that has been averaged or grouped into ranges across multiple records. Aggregate information is not identifiable information and poses little risk to individual privacy. For more detail on requesting aggregate information, please see the request aggregate information page.

Record-level Information

Record-level information is information that is taken directly from the health records of individuals. Unlike aggregate information, record-level information is not averaged or grouped. Record-level information poses a greater risk to individual privacy and demands greater due diligence before it is disclosed. For more detail on requesting record-level information, please see the request record level information page.

Individual’s own Personal Health Information

Individuals have the right to know what information the Centre has about them. Depending on the nature of the request, individuals requesting their personal health information may be referred to their primary health provider or the main location where they receive care. These contacts may be better able to respond to certain types of requests.