Enhancement of Clinical Data Repository by Linkage to State Mortality Files

We report a method and preliminary results for merging state mortality data into a hospital Clinical Data Repository (CDR). A broadly inclusive set of potential matches for our CDR patient population was obtained from the state Death Registry at the Virginia Center for Health Statistics (VCHS). For each possible match, a total weighted score was calculated according to the level of agreement between seven identifiers. The scoring method was validated by consideration of that population of CDR patients known to have died in the hospital. We conclude that the method represents a practical way to enhance hospital data with important outcomes information