Promoting Secondary Analysis of Electronic Medical Records in China: Summary of the PLAGH-MIT Critical Data Conference and Health Datathon

Electronic health records (EHRs) have been widely adopted among modern hospitals to collect and track clinical data. Secondary analysis of EHRs could complement the traditional randomized control trial (RCT) research model. However, most researchers in China lack either the technical expertise or the resources needed to utilize EHRs as a resource. In addition, a climate of cross-disciplinary collaboration to gain insights from EHRs, a crucial component of a learning healthcare system, is not prevalent. To address these issues, members from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and the People’s Liberation Army General Hospital (PLAGH) organized the first clinical data conference and health datathon in China, which provided a platform for clinicians, statisticians, and data scientists to team up and address information gaps in the intensive care unit (ICU).