An exploration into current practices related to the reuse of health data by the European pharmaceutical industry found that data is used for a variety of reasons across the R&D pathway. There are a number of enablers and barriers faced by the pharmaceutical industry when reusing health data. RAND Europe suggests seven ways which might help create a sustainable ecosystem in which health data is reused effectively.

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Reuse of health data by the European pharmaceutical industry

Current practice and implications for the future

by Lucy Hocking, Sarah Parks, Marlene Altenhofer, Salil Gunashekar

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Research Questions

  1. How are different types of health data reused by the pharmaceutical industry and what are the reasons for this?
  2. What are the key enablers and barriers to effective reuse of data?
  3. What should be considered for future action by different stakeholders, including industry and policy makers?

The health data landscape is rapidly evolving, with a growing recognition within the pharmaceutical industry of the potential benefits of reusing health data for secondary analysis. A new study by RAND Europe, commissioned by the European Federation of Pharmaceutical Industries and Associations, explored current practices in relation to this.

The study found that health data is reused across the research and development pathway for a variety of reasons, with the most frequently reused data being electronic health records, health registry data and clinical trial data. Researchers also identified several barriers and enablers to reusing health data, highlighting a number of priority topics which could help to create a more sustainable ecosystem in which health data is reused effectively. These included the need for continued research and development on analytic tools and promoting the adoption of standards and interoperability across datasets, to building public confidence and trust in the pharmaceutical industry to reuse health data and greater collaboration between industry and other key stakeholders.

Table of Contents

  • Chapter One

    Introduction

  • Chapter Two

    Case vignettes illustrating how the pharmaceutical industry in Europe is reusing health data

  • Chapter Three

    How is the pharmaceutical industry reusing health data?

  • Chapter Four

    What are the enablers and barriers to reusing health data?

  • Chapter Five

    Reflections on the future of the reuse of health data

  • Annex A

    Methodological approach

Research conducted by

The research described in this report was prepared for the European Federation of Pharmaceutical Industries and Associations (EFPIA) and conducted by RAND Europe.

This report is part of the RAND Corporation research report series. RAND reports present research findings and objective analysis that address the challenges facing the public and private sectors. All RAND reports undergo rigorous peer review to ensure high standards for research quality and objectivity.

The RAND Corporation is a nonprofit institution that helps improve policy and decisionmaking through research and analysis. RAND's publications do not necessarily reflect the opinions of its research clients and sponsors.