title: Residential Anonymous Linking Fields (RALFs): a novel information infrastructure to study the interaction between the environment and individuals' health.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  The necessity of aggregating health data over areas can impede our understanding of health determinants.
  
  
  METHODS
  We demonstrate the possibility of creating anonymous links between individual residences and the local environment using digital map data and a data linkage system.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Digital map data were used successfully to anonymously link 1.3 million addresses to the local environment. The data linkage system allows detailed environment data surrounding each residence to be linked both to each resident therein and to their medical records.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Local environment data specific to each house can be effectively and anonymously linked to the population registered with the National Health Service. Our integrated approach potentially enables flexible fine-scale, large-area observational studies of communities and health.
authors.affiliation: Centre for Health Information Research and Evaluation, School of Medicine, Swansea University, Singleton Park, Swansea SA2 8PP, UK. s.e.rodgers@swansea.ac.uk
authors.forename: Sarah E
authors.initials: SE
authors.lastname: Rodgers
authors.forename: Ronan A
authors.initials: RA
authors.lastname: Lyons
authors.forename: Rohan
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Dsilva
authors.forename: Kerina H
authors.initials: KH
authors.lastname: Jones
authors.forename: Caroline J
authors.initials: CJ
authors.lastname: Brooks
authors.forename: David V
authors.initials: DV
authors.lastname: Ford
authors.forename: Gareth
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: John
authors.forename: Jean-Philippe
authors.initials: JP
authors.lastname: Verplancke
mesh_terms: D003625:Data Collection / Q000379:methods; D019992:Databases as Topic / Q000458:organization & administration*; D005843:Geography; D006801:Humans; D011634:Public Health; D012111:Residence Characteristics; D013222:State Medicine; D006113:United Kingdom