A public health data system rooted in health equity is essential for all people to have the opportunity to live a long and healthy life. The ongoing effort to build an equity-centered public health data system is the focus of a special issue of the peer-reviewed journal Big Data. Click here to read the special issue now.
This special issue highlights the critical role of big data and the tech industry in advancing health equity by helping to create a modern public health data system.
In his introductory editorial, Big Data Editor-in-Chief Zoran Obradovic, PhD, Carnell Professor of Data Analytics, Temple University, Philadelphia, PA, states: "Our current system was simply not designed to meet the needs of our many diverse communities. As a result, we have data that are incomplete, inaccurate, out of data, and fragmented, They do not provide a true picture of health at the community level, which means that policymakers do not have the information they need to target their resources judiciously and effectively."
The special issue is based on recommendations of The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation's National Commission to Transform Public Health Data Systems.
"The recommendations of the National Commission to Transform Public Health Data Systems offer a blueprint of actionable solutions that can move the nation to a more equity-centered public health data system," said Alonzo Plough, Vice President for Research, Evaluation, and Learning and Chief Science Officer at the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. "The data and tech industry continues to be on the cutting edge of information exchange. Their expertise in data collection, analysis, and visualization in partnership with communities can help to catalyze innovation in the public health sector. The collection of articles featured in Big Data explores the steps needed to make this happen."
The special issue includes the following articles: "Equity as a Guiding Principle for the Public Health Data System"; "What Data Should Be Included in a Modern Public Health Data System"; "Demonstrating Equity Through the Convening of Expert Panels"; "The Issues of Interoperability and Data Connectedness for Public Health"; and "Technology and Data Implications for the Public Health Workforce."
About the Journal
Big Data, published quarterly online with open access options and in print, facilitates and supports the efforts of researchers, analysts, statisticians, business leaders, and policymakers to improve operations, profitability, and communications within their organizations. Spanning a broad array of disciplines focusing on novel big data technologies, policies, and innovations, the peer-reviewed journal brings together the community to address the challenges and discover new breakthroughs and trends living within this information. Complete tables of content and a sample issue may be viewed on the Big Data website.
About the Publisher
Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers is known for establishing authoritative medical and biomedical peer-reviewed journals. Its biotechnology trade magazine, GEN (Genetic Engineering & Biotechnology News), was the first in its field and is today the industry's most widely read publication worldwide. A complete list of the firm's more than 100 journals, newsmagazines, and books is available on the Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers website.
