Knowledge is power when working to improve the health of our communities. Access to better information enables a deeper understanding of local health needs and drives more effective, targeted action. Health Trends Across Communities in Minnesota (HTAC) uses summary information from electronic health records (EHR) to bridge gaps in the resources available to healthcare professionals, organizations, policymakers, and community members to meaningfully improve the health of communities in Minnesota.
Please contact MNEHRC@hhrinstitute.org with questions.
To request access to the HTAC Public Use Data File, please complete an HTAC Public Use Data File Request Form available here.
The HTAC Dashboard Updates and Corrections Log is available to view here.
HTAC Project Summary | Health Condition Descriptions | Health Condition Group Descriptions | Glossary of Technical Terms | FAQs
Knowledge is power when working to improve the health of our communities. Access to better information enables a deeper understanding of local health needs and drives more effective, targeted action. Health Trends Across Communities in Minnesota (HTAC) uses summary information from electronic health records (EHR) to bridge gaps in the resources available to healthcare professionals, organizations, policymakers, and community members to meaningfully improve the health of communities in Minnesota.
HTAC is a collaboration between healthcare systems, public health departments, health organizations, and health plans in Minnesota. HTAC uses summary reports from EHRs on a range of chronic, behavioral, and mental health conditions. The information comes from 11 health systems that participate in the Minnesota Electronic Health Record Consortium (MNEHRC). Information from the MNEHRC represents around 90% of healthcare for Minnesotans, which makes HTAC a powerful tool to describe the health of many communities.
HTAC data are updated annually and are available through reports and an interactive dashboard. HTAC reports include:
The HTAC health information complements other sources of public health data. HTAC data can be used to:
The HTAC collaboration involves people with great ideas and a passion for creating healthier lives for all Minnesotans. Project partners include the MNEHRC, Hennepin County Public Health, and the Center for Community Health (CCH). Organization and community partners help inform the development of the data dashboard and technical assistance materials.
Electronic Health Record:
Doctors and other healthcare team members mark down conditions discussed and identified during a patient’s visit. Health conditions, test results, and other information are given a code. All of this information is stored in an Electronic Health Record at the office or hospital.
Summary Reports:
Summary reports use information about a group of people. Information about individuals is not used.
Community:
Community can be defined in many ways. A few examples include where people live (geography), shared background (ethnicity), and personal characteristics (such as age and race).
The prevalence estimates for this health condition include Minnesota residents who were seen at any participating health system within the last 3 years and received a diagnosis of alcohol use in the last 5 years.
Data notes:
The alcohol use condition includes:
The prevalence estimates for this health condition include Minnesota residents who were seen at any participating health system within the last 3 years and received a diagnosis of anxiety in the last 5 years.
Data notes:
The anxiety condition includes:
The prevalence estimates for this condition include Minnesota residents who were seen at any participating health system within the last 3 years and received a diagnosis of arthritis in the last 5 years.
Data notes:
The arthritis health condition includes:
The prevalence estimates for this health condition include Minnesota residents who were seen at any participating health system within the last 3 years and received a diagnosis of asthma in the last 5 years.
Data notes:
This condition includes mild to severe asthma, asthma attacks, and other related diagnoses.
The prevalence estimates for this health condition include Minnesota residents who were seen at any participating health system within the last 3 years and received a diagnosis of bipolar disorder in the last 5 years.
Data notes:
The bipolar disorder condition includes:
The prevalence estimates for this health condition include Minnesota residents who were seen at any participating health systems within the last 3 years and received a diagnosis of cancer in the last 5 years.
Data notes:
The cancer health condition includes any cancer diagnosis except for non-melanoma skin cancer.
The prevalence estimates for this health condition include Minnesota residents who were seen at any participating health system within the last 3 years and received a diagnosis of cannabis use in the last 5 years.
Data notes:
The cannabis use condition includes:
The prevalence estimates for this health condition include Minnesota residents who were seen at any participating health system within the last three years and received a cerebrovascular disease diagnosis in the past five years.
Data notes:
The prevalence estimates for this condition include Minnesota residents who were seen at any participating health system within the last 3 years and:
a) received a diagnosis of chronic kidney disease in the last 5 years.
b) has a most recent outpatient estimate glomerular filtration rate less than 60, or
c) has a most recent urine albumin to creatinine ratio equal to or greater than 30.
Data Notes:
This condition includes chronic kidney disease, kidney failure, and other related diagnoses.
Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disorder (COPD)
The prevalence estimates for this health condition include Minnesota residents who were seen at any participating health system within the last 3 years and received a diagnosis of COPD in the last 5 years.
Data notes:
This condition includes:
The prevalence estimates for this health condition include Minnesota residents who were seen at any participating health system within the last 3 years and received a diagnosis of cocaine use in the last 5 years.
Data notes:
The cocaine use condition includes:
The prevalence estimates for this health condition include Minnesota residents who were seen at any participating health system within the last three years and received a cognitive impairment-related diagnosis in the past five years.
Data Notes:
The prevalence estimates for this condition include obstetrical deliveries where, at the time of the delivery, the patient was:
Data note: Prevalence estimates for deliveries are calculated as a percentage of deliveries among people who could give birth rather than among the whole population.
The prevalence estimates for this health condition include Minnesota residents who were seen at any participating health system within the last 3 years and received a diagnosis of dementia in the last 5 years.
Data Notes:
The prevalence estimates for this health condition include Minnesota residents who were seen at any participating health system within the last 3 years and received a diagnosis of depression in the last 5 years.
Data notes:
The depression condition includes:
The prevalence estimates for this health condition include Minnesota residents who were seen at any participating health system within the last three years and received a Type 1 Diabetes diagnosis in the last five years.
Data Notes:
Diabetes, Type I (no Type II Diagnosis)
The prevalence estimates for this health condition include Minnesota residents who were seen at any participating health system within the last three years and received a Type 1 Diabetes diagnosis, who did not also receive a Type 2 diabetes diagnosis, in the last five years.
Data Notes:
The prevalence estimates for this health condition include Minnesota residents who were seen at any participating health system within the last 3 years and received a diagnosis of type 2 diabetes or one A1c measure > 6.5 in the last 5 years.
Data notes:
The prevalence estimates for this health condition include deliveries where the patient was:
Data Notes:
The prevalence estimates for this health condition include Minnesota residents who were seen at any participating health system within the last 3 years and received a diagnosis of hallucinogen use in the last 5 years.
Data notes:
Heart Attack (Acute Myocardial Infarction)
The prevalence estimates for this health condition include Minnesota residents who were seen at any participating health system within the last 3 years and received a diagnosis of acute myocardial infarction in the last 5 years.
Data notes:
Heart Disease (Ischemic Heart Disease)
The prevalence estimates for this health condition include Minnesota residents who were seen at any participating health system within the last 3 years and received a diagnosis of ischemic heart disease in the last 5 years.
Data notes:
The prevalence estimates for this health condition include Minnesota residents who were seen at any participating health system within the last 3 years and received a diagnosis of heart failure in the last 5 years.
Data notes:
This condition includes:
The prevalence estimates for this health condition include Minnesota residents who were seen at any participating health system within the last 3 years and received a hemorrhagic stroke diagnosis in the last 5 years.
Data Notes:
Hyperlipidemia (High Cholesterol)
The prevalence estimates for this health condition include Minnesota residents who were seen at any participating health system within the last 3 years and received a diagnosis of high cholesterol in the last 5 years.
Data notes:
This condition includes hyperlipidemia and related diagnoses.
Hypertension (High Blood Pressure)
The prevalence estimates for this health condition include Minnesota residents who were seen at any participating health system within the last 3 years and received a diagnosis of high blood pressure or any two BP >=140/90 in the last 3 years for hypertension on two different days in the last 5 years.
Data notes:
This condition includes hypertension, resulting complications, and other related diagnoses.
The prevalence estimates for this health condition include Minnesota residents who were seen at any participating health system within the last 3 years and received a diagnosis of inhalant use in the last 5 years.
Data notes:
The inhalant use condition includes:
The prevalence estimates for this health condition include Minnesota residents who were seen at any participating health system within the last 3 years and received an interstitial lung disease diagnosis within the last 5 years.
Data Notes:
The prevalence estimates for this health condition include Minnesota residents who were seen at any participating health system within the last 3 years and received an ischemic stroke diagnosis in the last 5 years.
Data Notes:
The prevalence estimates for this health condition include Minnesota residents who were seen at any participating health system within the last 3 years and received a diagnosis of lung cancer in the last 5 years.
Data Notes:
The lung cancer condition includes:
This condition also includes different types and severity of lung cancers and other related diagnoses.
The prevalence estimates for this health condition include deliveries where, at the time of delivery, the patient was:
An opioid use-related diagnosis was noted at the time of delivery.
Data Notes:
Opioid Use includes:
Diagnoses are related to a range of opioids such as opioid medicines, opium, methadone, heroin, and fentanyl.
Prevalence estimates for maternal opioid use are calculated as a percentage of maternal opioid use among all deliveries rather than among the whole population.
The prevalence estimates for this condition include Minnesota residents who were seen at any participating health system within the last 3 years and received a diagnosis of obesity OR had a documented body mass index (BMI) of greater than 30 in the last 5 years.
Data Notes:
The prevalence estimates for this health condition include Minnesota residents who were seen at any participating health system within the last 3 years and received a diagnosis of opioid use in the last 5 years.
Data notes:
Pediatric Obesity (among children with a BMI measurement)
The prevalence estimates for this health condition include Minnesota residents aged 2-17 who were seen at any participating health system during a given year and had a documented body mass index (BMI) measurement indicating pediatric obesity.
Data Notes:
Peripheral Vascular Disease (PVD)
The prevalence estimates for this health condition include Minnesota residents who were seen at any participating health system within the last 3 years and received a diagnosis of peripheral vascular disease in the last 5 years.
Data notes:
This condition includes peripheral vascular diseases and PVD-related pain, tissue damage, and other complications.
Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)
The prevalence estimates for this health condition include Minnesota residents who were seen at any participating health system within the last 3 years and received a diagnosis of PTSD in the last 5 years.
Data notes:
The PTSD condition includes acute and chronic post-traumatic stress disorders.
The prevalence estimates for this health condition include Minnesota residents who were seen at any participating health system within the last 3 years and received a diagnosis of psychostimulant use in the last 5 years.
Data notes:
The prevalence estimates for this health condition include Minnesota residents who were seen at any participating health system within the last 3 years and received a diagnosis of a psychotic disorder in the last 5 years.
Data notes:
The psychotic disorders indicator includes:
The prevalence estimates for this indicator include Minnesota residents who were seen at any participating health system within the last 3 years and received a diagnosis of sedative use in the last 5 years.
Data notes:
The prevalence estimates for this health condition include deliveries where, at the time of delivery the patient was:
Data notes:
The severe maternal morbidity condition includes a range of negative health outcomes of labor and delivery that have short- and long-term health consequences. For example, complications from infection, anesthesia, and surgery resulting in events like heart attack, stroke, aneurysm, embolism, hemorrhage, and more.
Prevalence estimates for severe maternal morbidity are calculated as a percentage of severe maternal morbidity events among all deliveries rather than among the whole population.
Severe pediatric obesity (among children with a BMI measurement)
The prevalence estimates for this health condition include Minnesota residents aged 2-17 who were seen at any participating health system within the last 3 years and had a documented body mass index measurement indicating severe pediatric obesity in the last 5 years.
Data Notes:
The prevalence estimates for this health condition include Minnesota residents who were seen at any participating health system within the last 3 years and received a diagnosis of a stroke in the last 5 years.
Data notes:
The stroke indicator includes:
Suicidal Ideation or Recent Attempt
The prevalence estimates for this condition include Minnesota residents who were seen at any participating health system within the last 3 years and received a diagnosis of suicidal ideation or attempt in the last 5 years.
Data notes:
The prevalence estimates for this health condition include Minnesota residents who were seen at any participating health system within the last 3 years and received a transient ischemic stroke diagnosis in the last 5 years.
Data Notes:
Vitamin K Administration (within 6 hours of birth)
The prevalence estimates for this health condition include Minnesota residents who were born in a hospital at a participating health system, who did not die during the birth encounter, and who received intramuscular vitamin K within 6 hours of the time of birth.
Data Notes:
Vitamin K Administration (within 2 days of birth)
The prevalence estimates for this health condition include Minnesota residents who were born in a hospital at a participating health system, who did not die during the birth encounter, and who received intramuscular vitamin K within 2 days of the time of birth.
Data Notes:
The prevalence estimates for this health condition group include Minnesota residents who were seen at any participating health system within the last 3 years and received a diagnosis of a condition that increases the chance of developing a cardiovascular disease (risk factor).
Data note:
Cardiovascular risk factor conditions include:
Diabetes, Type II
The prevalence estimates for this health condition group include Minnesota residents who were seen at any participating health system within the last 3 years and received a mental health condition diagnosis in the last 5 years.
Data Note:
The mental health condition diagnoses include:
Any Mental Health Condition or Substance Use Disorder
The prevalence estimates for this health condition group include Minnesota residents who were seen at any participating health system within the last 3 years and received a mental health condition diagnosis or a substance use disorder diagnosis in the last 5 years.
Data Note:
The mental health condition diagnoses include:
The substance use disorder condition diagnoses include:
The prevalence estimates for this health condition group include Minnesota residents who were seen at any participating health system within the last 3 years and received any physical health condition diagnosis in the last 5 years.
Data Note:
The physical health condition diagnoses include:
The prevalence estimates for this health condition group include Minnesota residents who were seen at any participating health system within the last 3 years and received a substance use disorder diagnosis in the last 5 years.
Data Note:
The substance use disorder condition diagnoses include:
Atherosclerotic Cardiovascular Disease
The prevalence estimates for this health condition group include Minnesota residents who were seen at any participating health system within the last 3 years and received a diagnosis of an atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease-related condition within the last 5 years.
Data Notes:
Both Mental Health Condition and Substance Use Disorder Diagnosis
The prevalence estimates for this health condition group include Minnesota residents who were seen at any participating health system within the last 3 years and received a mental health condition diagnosis and a substance use disorder diagnosis in the last 5 years.
Data Note:
The mental health condition diagnoses include:
The substance use disorder condition diagnoses include:
Cardiovascular Disease Risk Factors
The prevalence estimates for this health condition group include Minnesota residents who were seen at a participating health system within the last 3 years and received a diagnosis of a condition that increases the chance of developing a cardiovascular disease (risk factor) in the last 5 years.
Data Note:
Cardiovascular Health Condition and Mental Health Condition
The prevalence estimates for this health condition group include Minnesota residents who were seen at any participating health system within the last 3 years and received a diagnosis of a condition that increases the chance of developing a cardiovascular disease (risk factor) and a mental health condition disorder diagnosis in the last 5 years.
Data note:
Cardiovascular risk factor conditions include:
The mental health condition diagnoses include:
Cardiovascular Health Condition And Mental Health Condition or Substance Use Disorder
The prevalence estimates for this health condition group include Minnesota residents who were seen at any participating health system within the last 3 years and received a diagnosis of a condition that increases the chance of developing a cardiovascular disease (risk factor) AND a mental health condition diagnosis OR substance use disorder diagnosis in the last 5 years.
Data note:
Cardiovascular risk factor conditions include:
The mental health condition diagnoses include:
The substance use disorder condition diagnoses include:
Cardiovascular Health Condition and Substance Use Disorder
The prevalence estimates for this health condition group include Minnesota residents who were seen at any participating health system within the last 3 years and received a diagnosis of a condition that increases the chance of developing a cardiovascular disease (risk factor) AND a substance use disorder diagnosis in the last 5 years.
Data note:
Cardiovascular risk factor conditions include:
The substance use disorder condition diagnoses include:
Physical Health Condition (2 diagnoses)
The prevalence estimates for this health condition include Minnesota residents who were seen at any participating health system within the last 3 years and received 2 physical health condition diagnoses in the last 5 years.
Data Note:
The physical health condition diagnoses include:
Physical Health Condition (3+ diagnoses)
The prevalence estimates for this health condition include Minnesota residents who were seen at any participating health system within the last 3 years and received 3 or more physical health condition diagnoses in the last 5 years.
The physical health condition diagnoses include:
Physical Health Condition and Mental Health Condition
The prevalence estimates for this health condition group include Minnesota residents who were seen at any participating health system within the last 3 years and received a physical health condition diagnosis and a mental health condition diagnosis in the last 5 years.
The physical health condition diagnoses include:
The mental health condition diagnoses include:
Physical Health Condition and Mental Health Condition or Substance Use Disorder
The prevalence estimates for this health condition group include Minnesota residents who were seen at any participating health system within the last 3 years and received a physical health condition diagnosis and a mental health condition diagnosis, or a substance use disorder diagnosis in the last 5 years.
The physical health condition diagnoses include:
The mental health condition diagnoses include:
The substance use disorder condition diagnoses include:
Physical Health Condition and Substance Use Disorder
The prevalence estimates for this health condition group include Minnesota residents who were seen at any participating health system within the last 3 years and received a physical health condition diagnosis and a substance use disorder diagnosis in the last 5 years.
The physical health condition diagnoses include:
The substance use disorder condition diagnoses include:
Physical Health Condition, Mental Health Condition, and Substance Use Disorder
The prevalence estimates for this health condition group include Minnesota residents who were seen at any participating health system within the last 3 years and received a physical health condition diagnosis and a mental health condition diagnosis, and a substance use disorder diagnosis in the last 5 years.
The physical health condition diagnoses include:
The mental health condition diagnoses include:
The substance use disorder condition diagnoses include:
Substance Use Disorder (2 substances)
The prevalence estimates for this health condition group include Minnesota residents who were seen at any participating health system within the last 3 years and received 2 substance use disorder diagnoses in the last 5 years.
The substance use disorder condition diagnoses include:
Substance Use Disorder (3+ substances)
The prevalence estimates for this health condition group include Minnesota residents who were seen at any participating health system within the last 3 years and received 3 or more substance use disorder diagnoses in the last 5 years.
The substance use disorder condition diagnoses include:
The prevalence estimates for this health condition group include Minnesota residents who were seen at any participating health system within the last 3 years and received 2 or more of any cardiovascular risk factor condition, physical health condition, mental health condition, or substance use disorder diagnosis.
Data note:
Cardiovascular risk factor conditions include:
The physical health condition diagnoses include:
The mental health condition diagnoses include:
The substance use disorder condition diagnoses include:
Differences in characteristics between groups, such as age and sex, may influence the prevalence of certain health conditions. Adjusting is a statistical process that helps compare the rates of health conditions when these differences occur. Adjusted rates take into consideration these differences. Unadjusted rates use the actual (“raw”) prevalence of health conditions without taking age and sex differences into account. The HTAC dashboard shows both adjusted and unadjusted rates of health conditions.
For a prevalence rate, the denominator is the entire defined population. For HTAC, the population is based on the number of EHR records from healthcare systems included in the MN EHR Consortium.
Electronic Health Record (EHR)
An electronic health record (EHR) is an electronic version of a patient’s medical chart. During a visit with a patient, healthcare staff enter health information such as diagnoses, vital signs, demographics, lab data, immunizations, medications, notes, and more.
Health disparities are differences in health among population groups based on characteristics like sex, race, ethnicity, neighborhood, or geographic location.
Homelessness experience includes Minnesota Homeless Management Information System (HMIS) records consistent with the use of emergency shelter beds, street outreach services, transitional housing, or supportive housing during 2024.
A lookback period is the timeframe from which data are included in the analysis. For HTAC, the lookback period includes data for people who were seen at a participating health system within the last 3 years and received a diagnosis related to one of the featured health conditions within the last 5 years.
A numerator is a subset of the people included in the denominator. For a prevalence rate, the numerator is the number or count of people in the population with the health condition of interest. For example, if 3000 people have the condition of interest and the total defined population is 15,000, the numerator is 3,000.
The percentage of people in the population with a certain health condition. For example, if 3000 people have the condition of interest and the total defined population is 15,000, people then the prevalence is 20% (3,000/15,000 = .20).
Social Vulnerability Index (SVI)
Social Vulnerability Index (SVI) is a commonly used tool for public health planning and emergency preparedness. SVI is used to help predict how at-risk a community is to natural disasters, epidemics, climate change, and other public health emergencies. The SVI takes into consideration several factors, such as community poverty levels, types of housing, household characteristics, and more.
Summary (or aggregated) data combines information on individuals to create a group total so that we can understand the health of a whole community while maintaining confidentiality.
What is Health Trends Across Communities?
Health Trends Across Communities (HTAC) is a unique collaboration of health systems, local public health departments, and health plans. Our goal is to promote health equity and improve the health of communities across Minnesota by providing accessible, timely, and detailed health information.
HTAC reports can help users understand the health and well-being of our communities. HTAC provides summary reports on the prevalence of multiple health conditions (Prevalence refers to the proportion of people with certain diagnoses.) There are many potential ways this information can be used, including community health assessments, collaborations between different organizations and agencies, grant writing, program planning, evaluation, and more.
HTAC reports can help users:
Where does HTAC information come from?
HTAC uses summary reports from electronic health records from participating health systems to estimate the proportion of people with different health conditions. HTAC includes information from:
HTAC also includes information about:
Who is represented in the reports?
HTAC reports are maintained by the Minnesota Electronic Health Record Consortium (MNEHRC), which is a collaboration between Minnesota’s 11 largest health systems, local public health agencies, state homelessness and correctional agencies, researchers, clinicians, and Minnesota Department of Health representatives. As a result of this expansive partnership, information from the MNEHRC represents health care for around 90% of Minnesotans.
HTAC reports provide estimates of the proportion of people with certain health conditions among people who received care at a participating health system. People are included if they are a Minnesota resident and received care at least once at any of the participating health systems within the reporting period.
HTAC dashboards are free to access and open to the public. Users might include local public health departments, health systems, nonprofits, social service organizations, students, health advocates, and community organizations.
Why use electronic health record data for community health?
Information from electronic health records (EHRs) can provide unique insights into the health of communities.
EHRs have several strengths as a data source:
What are the limitations of electronic health record data?
As with all data sources, summary reports from electronic health records have limitations. Users should keep these limitations in mind when interpreting the reports.
Limitations include:
How is patient privacy protected?
HTAC information does not identify patients and does not include protected health information. All data about individual patients stays within each health system’s secure system. The MNEHRC does NOT access individual medical records.
Each health system generates a summary report that is combined with summaries from other health systems. Individual health system data is not shared. HTAC users only have access to the summary combined information. Sharing only summary information allows for patient privacy to be maintained.
Also, information is not reported if fewer than 11 people have a particular condition in a census tract. This policy helps protect patient confidentiality.
This project is led by a partnership of the Minnesota Electronic Health Record Consortium, the Center for Community Health (CCH), and Hennepin County Public Health.
HTAC reports are built and maintained by the Minnesota Electronic Health Record Consortium (MNEHRC), which is a collaboration between Minnesota’s 11 largest health systems, local public health agencies, state homelessness and correctional agencies, researchers, clinicians, and Minnesota Department of Health representatives. As a result of this expansive partnership, the reports represent health care for at least 90% of Minnesotans.
MNEHRC provides overall project leadership, leads community engagement, and coordinates data management, analysis, and reporting among partners.
Eleven MNEHRC members participate in the HTAC project and provide time, resources, and summary health information:
The Center for Community Health (CCH) provides broad direction setting for the project.
Hennepin County Public Health is the fiscal agent, supports project management, and builds project-related communications and technical capacity.
Minnesota Department of Health's Center for Public Health Practice funds this pilot project through a Minnesota Public Health Infrastructure Grant.
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Prevalence information is generally reliable across regions in Minnesota, even if a health system in a given area does not contribute to HTAC.
First, HTAC data include many people who do not regularly get their care directly through a participating health system. Some healthcare providers participate in HTAC through a larger healthcare system's electronic health record. Even people who do not regularly receive care through a participating healthcare system in a three year period.
Second, HTAC's population coverage is much better than any other health resource. Compared to census figures, we estimate that many areas of the state represent more than 90% of the population. Even in places where coverage is lower, people from your community who are represented in the data are likely similar to those who are not, allowing for reasonable prevalence estimates. In areas where a major healthcare provider does not participate in HTAC, we encourage data users to use prevalence information rather than the specific number of people with a condition (count).
Please reach out to mnehrc@hhrinstitute.org or the participating healthcare systems in your area for additional information.
How were these health conditions chosen?
The Minnesota Electronic Health Record Consortium (MNEHRC) and the Center for Community Health’s Assessment Alignment Committee (AAC) collaborated to select the initial list of over 20 health conditions that are currently reported on the HTAC dashboard.
First, the MNEHRC reviewed 45 potential health conditions and outcomes for the following criteria:
Then, the Center for Community Health’s Assessment Alignment Committee members scored and ranked this list of health conditions using the following criteria:
Current health conditions included:
What technical infrastructure does HTAC use?
HTAC’s technical infrastructure was developed and is maintained by the Minnesota Electronic Health Record Consortium (MNEHRC). This infrastructure is based on a distributed data approach. In a distributed data model, the detailed data stays within the health system and is not shared. Health systems share summary information, such as counts of people with certain conditions (which does not identify any individual patient). The summary information from each health system is centrally combined and analyzed.
Sharing summary information is made possible through using a common format, often called a common data model, at each participating health system. The MNEHRC uses a common data model called the Observational Medical Outcomes Partnership (OMOP).
Data analysts create the HTAC dashboards using a software program called Power BI.
Are people who use multiple health systems counted more than once?
No. The Minnesota Electronic Health Record Consortium (MNEHRC) uses a one-way encryption process to deduplicate across health systems. This means that information for a given patient will be included in only one health systems summary report, even if the person has received care at more than one health system.
Why are some census tracts blank?
Estimates are hidden if there are fewer than 11 people with a particular condition. This helps protect patient confidentiality. This policy is called data suppression and follows the Center for Medicaid and Medicare Service’s policy.
How do you determine how many people have a particular condition?
We include anyone who was diagnosed with a condition in the last five years and was seen at a participating health system within the last three years.
A standard among health systems is to think about panels of patients who have been seen in the last three years. In addition, when people who are seen in the more distant past are included, the likelihood of including people who have moved out of state increases.
No. For chronic conditions (e.g., diabetes), people who died before December 31 of the reporting year are excluded. This way, we report the prevalence of conditions among individuals alive on December 31 of a given year. For event-based conditions (e.g., maternal morbidity), people who died before January 1 of the reporting year are excluded. This way, we report the incidence rate for individuals at risk of having an event on January 1 of the reporting year.
How should I cite information in the HTAC dashboard?
Minnesota Electronic Health Record Consortium. “Health Trends Across Communities in Minnesota.” [Date accessed]. https://mnehrconsortium.org/health-trends-across-communities-minnesota-dashboard
Yes! Please complete this HTAC Public Use Data Request to submit a request to access the data. The purpose of this survey is to collect information that will assist us in monitoring the appropriate use of HTAC data. We will review your response shortly and send you the public use file or a request for more information.
Who can I contact to learn more?
Reach out to MNEHRC@hhrinstitute.org for more information about this project.
