What is the Child Health Data Repository?
The Child Health Data Repository is a comprehensive inventory of over 100 Canadian datasets that can be used to search for specific intersections of child/family health and equity variables based on our Conceptual Framework for Child Flourishing in Canada. Through this tool, we strive to promote and facilitate access to existing datasets relevant to child health equity research.
To request a free consultation with our data consultant, Sima Gandhi, please complete the online registration form for our Data Consultation Service. For any other inquiries, or suggestions on how we can improve our Data Repostiry, please send an email to leong.centre@sickkids.ca.
What is Included in the Data Repository?
Description. Provides a summary of the scope of the dataset and what type of information is available.
Flourishing Indicators. Measures of child and family flourishing included in the Leong Centre's adapted Conceptual Framework for Child Flourishing in Canada. These include: Adolescent Suicide, Life Satisfaction, Access to Maternal & Child Mental Health Services, Protection from Violence, Early Child Development & School Readiness, Access to Maternal & Child Health Services, Child Health & Morbidity, Parental Health & Morbidity, Overweight & Obesity, Growth & Nutrition, Educational Achievement, Social Skills, Health Promoting Environment, Reproductive & Sexual Health, Lack of Poverty
Jurisdiction. Refers to the region from which the data is collected, and includes the following categories: Ontario Only, Pan-Canadian, International.
Category. Refers to the type of data categorized as follows:
- Survey Data. Survey data include data collected from a sample of respondents. Data are collected from a targeted audience about a specific topic to conduct research. Survey methods may be cross-sectional or longitudinal, and conducted through include online or paper or questionnaires, telephone surveys, or in-person interviews.
- Routinely Collected Health Data. Routinely collected health data included data collected during health system encounters, including physicians’ offices, diagnostic procedures, hospital admissions, among others. These data are collected to examine health system delivery or performance.
- Routinely Collected Social and Environmental Data. Data sources related to social services provided to families, such as housing, financial assistance, childcare, employment, as well as sources of area and community-level data such as resources, neighbourhood safety, and built environment, among others.
- Clinical Registry. Clinical disease or patient registries including records of individuals with specific conditions, diagnoses, procedures or interventions. Registries provide information on clinical practice, patient outcomes, safety and effectiveness, treatment outcomes and costs.
- Large Prospective Cohorts. Prospective cohorts include observational data on specific disease or clinical populations in real time, extracted from administrative data or electronic health record systems.
Population. The individuals and groups represented in each database, including:
- Perinatal (Maternal & Newborns). Includes data on maternal health (health status, health service use), fertility (treatment, procedures), prenatal (antenatal) care, hospital admissions (pregnancy, labour, birth) post-natal care, early newborn care and screening (age < 30 days), fetal and congenital anomalies, and neonatal outcomes.
- Children & Adolescents. Includes data related to health and social outcomes among children and adolescents aged 30 days to 19 years.
- Families. Data on family and household characteristics and outcomes (e.g. income, educational attainment, employment, family type/composition, social assistance, access to childcare).
Access. How the data can be accessed.
Link. External URL for more information on the dataset, including methodology, data definitions, variables, and related documentation.
How Can Data be Accessed?
This inventory does not provide data access. Information on how to access the specific data associated with the datasets can be found in the details of each, but in general can be accessed through the following:
- ICES data holdings: https://www.ices.on.ca/Data-and-Privacy/ICES-data/Working-with-ICES-Data
- Statistics Canada Microdata Access (information on accessing data using the Public Use Microdata File (PUMF) and Research Data Centres (RDCs): https://www.statcan.gc.ca/en/microdata
List of Datasets (A-Z)
Ontario Diabetes Dataset (ODD)
Description: The Ontario Diabetes Database (ODD) contains all individuals in Ontario diabetes, identified since 1991. Note that the data excludes gestational diabetes, and does not distinguish between type 1 or type 2.
Access: ICES
Ontario Drug Benefit (ODB)
Description: This database contains Ontario Drug Benefit (ODB) information, including recipients, payment, claims, and pharmacy and practitioner information. The ODB Program provides drug benefits for Ontarians aged 65 and older, residents of long-term care homes, homes for special care, recipients of professional home services and social assistance and recipients of the Trillium Drug Program.
Access: ICES
Ontario Health Insurance Plan (OHIP) Claims
Description: The OHIP database contains information on physicians reimbursed after submitting claims to OHIP for each service provided. Services may include physician consultations and assessments in the outpatient, acute care, and long-term care settings; information on diagnostic and therapeutic procedures; surgical procedures; and laboratory services. These data only capture information for those physicians who work on a fee-for-service basis.
Access: ICES, MOH
Ontario Health Study (OHS)
Description: The Ontario Health Study is an ongoing research study investigating risk factors that cause diseases like cancer, diabetes, heart disease, asthma and Alzheimer’s. Participants complete health-related questionnaires online, with follow-up questionnaires administered over time to follow their health as they age. Researchers will use this health information to study how lifestyle, environment and family history affect health over time and to develop strategies for the prevention, early detection and treatment of diseases. The measurements and blood samples collected will help researchers better understand the factors that influence our health and quality of life.
Access: ICES
Ontario HIV Treatment Network
Description: Data are collected by the Ontario HIV Treatment Network (OHTN), as part of the OHTN Cohort Study (OCS). The OCS is an anonymous, observational, open, dynamic cohort study of people living with HIV in Ontario. The study began in 1994 as clinical information collected from individuals living with HIV in Ontario was entered into a database. The source population consists of HIV-infected persons in Ontario who have been diagnosed and have entered care.
Access: ICES
Ontario Hypertension Dataset
Description: The Ontario Hypertension Dataset is a cumulative database and includes records for all incident and prevalent cases of hypertension in Ontario. The dataset was created using hospital discharge abstracts from CIHI (including same day surgery, non-acute care) database, physician service claims from OHIP database.
Access: ICES
Ontario Looking After Children (OnLAC)
Description: The Ontario Looking After Children (OnLAC) project uses an approach aimed at raising the standard of care for children receiving residential services. It focuses on seven key developmental areas for children: health, education, identity, family, social presentation, emotional and behavioural development, and self-care skills. OnLAC involves collecting information from young people in out-of-home care in these key areas using the Assessment and Action Record (AAR) data collection instrument.
Access: MCCSS
Ontario Marginalization Index (ON-MARG)
Description: The Ontario Marginalization Index (ON-MARG) is a geographically (Census) based index developed to quantify the degree of marginalization occurring across the province of Ontario. It is comprised of 4 major dimensions thought to underlie the construct of marginalization: residential instability, material deprivation, dependency and ethnic concentration.
Access: ICES
Ontario Mental Health Reporting System (OMHRS)
Description: The Ontario Mental Health Reporting System (OMHRS) analyzes and reports on information submitted to CIHI about all individuals receiving adult mental health services in Ontario, as well as some individuals receiving services in youth inpatient beds and selected facilities in other provinces. OMHRS includes information about mental and physical health, social supports and service use, as well as care planning, outcome measurement, quality improvement and case-mix funding applications. OMHRS comprehensive data is collected using the Resident Assessment Instrument — Mental Health (RAI-MH©) version 2.0, a standardized clinical instrument used to regularly assess those receiving inpatient mental health care. The RAI-MH gathers information on where individuals are admitted from and why, where they are discharged to and why, and, potentially, information at other points in time during a hospital stay.
Access: ICES
Ontario Myocardial Infarction Database
Description: The OMID cohort was originally developed to study longitudinal trends in the frequency and outcomes of index AMI hospitalizations and to facilitate comparisons of AMI care and outcomes across institutions and hospitals of a relatively homogenous group of AMI patients. The current algorithm does not capture outpatient AMIs, recurrent AMIs within a year of the index, or AMIs occurring as in-hospital complications on a noncardiac surgical ward, and should not be considered a comprehensive Database of all patients with AMI in Ontario.
Access: ICES