We used a record linkage protocol developed previously (van den Brandt et al., 1990), which was based on the first four characters of the family name, gender and date of birth.
Matching was performed by a standardized probabilistic linkage protocol with the following data items: ID number, surname, first given name, second given name, third given name, sex, date of birth, and date and state of residence at last contact.
The core problem of a privacy-preserving record linkage protocol is the calculation of the similarity of two encrypted strings.
However, it is easy to design a privacy-preserving geocoding service using a minor variation of the blindfolded record linkage protocol described above.
Multivariate statistical analysis is then performed on information from one cohort and two household panel studies that share a great deal of the data linkage protocol but vary according to study branding, survey design and study population.
By identifying differences and implementing our linkage protocol, the merged database serves as a foundation for a broad array of analyses on healthcare use and costs for effectiveness research.
This linkage protocol is well validated and reported to have a sensitivity and specificity of 94% and 100%, respectively (10).
LS assisted with the development of the linkage protocol and undertook the linkage.
The data linkage protocol from the AIHW has been published online.
VS assisted with the development of the linkage protocol, assisted with interpretation of results and helped to draft the manuscript.
In addition, to protect the privacy of individuals, all linkage was carried out within the AIHW using the Institute's data linkage protocol [ 23].
