From paper records to research resource for health and social science

Lindie Tessmer Andersen
2021 Zenodo  
Denmark is one of the countries in the world with most population-based registrations and therefore many records, especially regarding health. Researchers often use these huge amounts of digital records for a range of health related research questions. The Danish National Archives have funding for providing a dedicated service for collection, preservation and dissemination of data from health science named DNA Health. Until recent years focus for DNA Health has been on born research data
more » ... vely. However, what about the great amount of paper records with huge potential for health science purposes held by the Danish National Archives? A group of Danish health researchers approached the DNA Health with the question: "What about the paper records from the schools medical offices, how can these records become a research resource for us?" To comply with this question the DNA Health formed a proposal for a digitization project in close collaboration with the researchers. The aim of the project is to create a database for research purposes based on the paper records from 1909-2012 from the northern part of the area of Jutland, where both rural and urban areas were included. More than 8.000 paper records will be digitalized into a ready to use database for research purposes. The database includes variables such as Social Security Numbers; birth weight; height and weight measured every year during the child's school years; parents' employment at the time of the child's school entry; number of siblings, vaccinations registrations and date for each registration. An advisory board of researchers have ensured that the selected variables are in line with researchers' needs. By 1st of December 2019 more than 1.750 children's paper records from the school medical offices has been keyed in. The database is ready to use ultimo 2021.
doi:10.5281/zenodo.5181112 fatcat:jgqn5jqn6zb77dvg6vgyzber7a