Leveraging social determinants of health data in HEOR to drive meaningful change in healthcare

Written by The Healthcare Business of LexisNexis® Risk Solutions
Guest columns Health data Health economics Health equity Outcomes research Real-world evidence

Healthcare is inconsistent across the US. Factors such as a patient’s financial situation, insurance plan, access to care and physical location create disparities that affect health outcomes and costs. Once often considered irrelevant, social determinants of health (SDOH) data is having a significant influence on health economics and outcomes research (HEOR). Researchers are finding they can improve patient treatments and outcomes by incorporating SDOH variables into their work, which is discussed in this Guest Column.

Promoting health equity requires HEOR researchers to rethink their approach to data collection. Their real-world evidence (RWE) studies must include diverse participants, and they should incorporate SDOH data in their retrospective analyses to evaluate outcomes for subpopulations.

Holistic SDOH data and insights are crucial for determining where health disparities exist. Inclusive research practices aimed at advancing health equity can encompass:

  • Community-based participatory research – Reach out to residents in underserved communities to overcome barriers to care.
  • Decentralized and hybrid models – Offer digital and localized options to attract individuals with limited time or lack of transportation.
  • Digital twin research – Integrate elements into synthetic datasets that provide social context.
  • RWE studies – Seek a broader range of patients to expand the representative sample of experiences.

Addressing healthcare access and outcome disparities

HEOR studies can help level care for all patients. With more holistic and accurate data, researchers and healthcare providers can answer questions such as:

  • Do underlying health disparities result in different outcomes?
  • What role do factors such as financial stability and geographic location play in understanding health disparities?
  • How does the interaction of social factors affect therapeutic dosage, distribution and delivery systems? For example, at-home devices versus. hospital treatment to overcome barriers to care such as lack of transportation.
  • How can research teams partner with healthcare delivery organizations and payers to ensure that cost does not limit access to care?
  • What policies and practices can help drive an equitable healthcare system for the future?

Accuracy across sources and care settings – ensuring data quality

Research teams need patient-level profiles of SDOH factors that align with standard frameworks and defined domains of social determinants. Data sources often present a variety of data quality and standardization issues. Ideally, data should be:

  • Comprehensive and representative of all populations
  • Consistent in detail, especially when coming from multiple sources
  • Gathered by third parties to avoid biases, inconsistencies and inaccuracies
  • Current as economic and social conditions change quickly
  • Standardized to synthesize data between providers, care settings and systems

When using SDOH data for HEOR studies, researchers must assess data sources and collection methods. They should consider whether individual or community-level data is necessary and how data will be sourced for comparator arms. When considering longitudinal outcomes, researchers should prioritize recent data, availability of historic data and the frequency of data updates.

Thorough evaluation of potential data vendors is crucial. Assess their reputation, certifications and adherence to industry best practices. Vendors must maintain rigorous standards for data integrity and sourcing. They should also use common definitions and coding systems to support consistency in data collection.

Collaboration with data vendors to link and enrich clinical data sources or patient-reported outcomes can enhance the comprehensiveness and precision of the data. Better data will ultimately provide more useful insights and allow providers to counter health disparities more effectively.

Safeguarding sensitive data

Protecting SDOH data is critical. When linked with other data sources, it increases the risk of identifying patients and tainting blinded or randomized trials. Researchers should use robust de-identification methods, such as tokenization and encryption.

Referential data can help make the tokenization process more secure. Data integrity can be further enhanced by enabling error detection across diverse data sources. These processes keep personal information, including any direct identifiers, more secure even when processing large data volumes.

Implementing a variety of controls allows researchers to comply with regulations and protect patient privacy.

Transformative processes for better research insights

Improving the quality and inclusivity of HEOR helps to advance health equity. Researchers contribute to that goal when they:

  • Consider SDOH data – Develop insights into outcomes across health disparities, comparative effectiveness and context for value-based care.
  • Leverage analytics – Identify individual-level social risk factors to facilitate tailored interventions.
  • Use digital health tools – Use wearables and telehealth platforms for real-time data collection to bridge gaps in healthcare access.
  • Improve data interoperability – Ensure seamless SDOH data exchange across healthcare systems for more holistic care.
  • Collaborate with other stakeholders – Diversify clinical trials, improve research inclusivity, reduce health disparities and improve outcomes for all populations.
  • Apply technology solutions – Enhance access for underserved communities through telemedicine and remote monitoring.

Healthcare equity is a multifaceted challenge that demands creative solutions. Partnering with the right data experts allows researchers to collect accurate, real-world data that offers a deeper understanding of patient journeys. Through HEOR studies, new insights into health disparities can emerge, helping to pave the way for a more equitable healthcare system, one in which patient economic factors and geography aren’t barriers to care.

Sponsorship for this Guest Column was provided by
The Healthcare Business of LexisNexis® Risk Solutions

The Healthcare Business of LexisNexis® Risk Solutions harnesses the power of data, sophisticated analytics platforms and technology solutions, empowering healthcare researchers with critical insights to increase efficiencies, reduce inequities and create healthier communities.