title: Improving Care And Research Electronic Data Trust Antwerp (iCAREdata): a research database of linked data on out-of-hours primary care.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Primary out-of-hours care is developing throughout Europe. High-quality databases with linked data from primary health services can help to improve research and future health services.
  
  
  METHODS
  In 2014, a central clinical research database infrastructure was established (iCAREdata: Improving Care And Research Electronic Data Trust Antwerp, www.icaredata.eu ) for primary and interdisciplinary health care at the University of Antwerp, linking data from General Practice Cooperatives, Emergency Departments and Pharmacies during out-of-hours care. Medical data are pseudonymised using the services of a Trusted Third Party, which encodes private information about patients and physicians before data is sent to iCAREdata.
  
  
  RESULTS
  iCAREdata provides many new research opportunities in the fields of clinical epidemiology, health care management and quality of care. A key aspect will be to ensure the quality of data registration by all health care providers.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  This article describes the establishment of a research database and the possibilities of linking data from different primary out-of-hours care providers, with the potential to help to improve research and the quality of health care services.
authors.affiliation: Department of Primary and Interdisciplinary Care (ELIZA) - Centre for General Practice (CHA), Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, University of Antwerp - Campus Drie Eiken, Universiteitsplein 1, 2610, Antwerp, Wilrijk, Belgium.
authors.forename: Annelies
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Colliers
authors.affiliation: Department of Primary and Interdisciplinary Care (ELIZA) - Centre for General Practice (CHA), Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, University of Antwerp - Campus Drie Eiken, Universiteitsplein 1, 2610, Antwerp, Wilrijk, Belgium.
authors.forename: Stefaan
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Bartholomeeusen
authors.affiliation: Department of Primary and Interdisciplinary Care (ELIZA) - Centre for General Practice (CHA), Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, University of Antwerp - Campus Drie Eiken, Universiteitsplein 1, 2610, Antwerp, Wilrijk, Belgium.
authors.forename: Roy
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Remmen
authors.affiliation: Department of Primary and Interdisciplinary Care (ELIZA) - Centre for General Practice (CHA), Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, University of Antwerp - Campus Drie Eiken, Universiteitsplein 1, 2610, Antwerp, Wilrijk, Belgium.|Department of Epidemiology and Social Medicine (ESOC), Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, University of Antwerp - Campus Drie Eiken, Universiteitsplein 1, 2610, Antwerp, Wilrijk, Belgium.
authors.forename: Samuel
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Coenen
authors.affiliation: Department of Primary and Interdisciplinary Care (ELIZA) - Centre for General Practice (CHA), Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, University of Antwerp - Campus Drie Eiken, Universiteitsplein 1, 2610, Antwerp, Wilrijk, Belgium.
authors.forename: Barbara
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Michiels
authors.affiliation: Department of Primary and Interdisciplinary Care (ELIZA) - Centre for General Practice (CHA), Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, University of Antwerp - Campus Drie Eiken, Universiteitsplein 1, 2610, Antwerp, Wilrijk, Belgium.
authors.forename: Hilde
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Bastiaens
authors.affiliation: Department of Primary and Interdisciplinary Care (ELIZA) - Centre for General Practice (CHA), Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, University of Antwerp - Campus Drie Eiken, Universiteitsplein 1, 2610, Antwerp, Wilrijk, Belgium.
authors.forename: Paul
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Van Royen
authors.affiliation: Department of Primary and Interdisciplinary Care (ELIZA) - Centre for General Practice (CHA), Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, University of Antwerp - Campus Drie Eiken, Universiteitsplein 1, 2610, Antwerp, Wilrijk, Belgium.
authors.forename: Veronique
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Verhoeven
authors.affiliation: Department of Primary and Interdisciplinary Care (ELIZA) - Centre for General Practice (CHA), Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, University of Antwerp - Campus Drie Eiken, Universiteitsplein 1, 2610, Antwerp, Wilrijk, Belgium.
authors.forename: Philip
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Holmgren
authors.affiliation: Koninklijke Apothekersvereniging van Antwerpen (KAVA), Lange Leemstraat 187, 2018, Antwerp, Belgium.
authors.forename: Bernard
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: De Ruyck
authors.affiliation: Department of Primary and Interdisciplinary Care (ELIZA) - Centre for General Practice (CHA), Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, University of Antwerp - Campus Drie Eiken, Universiteitsplein 1, 2610, Antwerp, Wilrijk, Belgium. hilde.philips@uantwerpen.be.
authors.forename: Hilde
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Philips
mesh_terms: D039602:After-Hours Care / Q000592:standards / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D016208:Databases, Factual; D011320:Primary Health Care / Q000592:standards / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D058996:Quality Improvement
keywords: After hours care; Data linkage; Database; Emergency Department; Interdisciplinary; Primary care