Procedures for health data linkage: applications in health surveillance

OBJECTIVE: To present a standardized methodology for linking different public health databases. METHODS: This was a methodological review article specifically describing data processing procedures for deterministic linkage between structured databases. It instructs on how to: treat data, select linkage keys, and link databases using two databases simulated in R software. RESULTS: The commands used for the deterministic linkage of the inner_join type were presented. The linkage process resulted in a database with 40,108 pairs using only the “Name” key. Adding the second key, “Name of mother”, the resulted dropped to 112 pairs. By adding the third key, “Date of birth”, only two pairs were identified. CONCLUSION: Database linkage and its analysis are valid and valuable tools for health services in supporting health surveillance actions.