The Challenge
The sensitive nature of much health information results in silos of data in local or secure environments, but modern data science depends on data aggregations of considerable scale and integration. Applying techniques like machine learning to sensitive data across multiple secure data repositories for national-scale health insights creates challenges that require national coordination and capability.
The Approach
The ARDC is uniquely positioned to coordinate and deliver national infrastructure capability to support advanced analytics in health research through the People Research Data Commons (People RDC).
Framework Development Phase
The Framework Development Phase took place in the first half of 2024. It involved co-designing a national framework, the specification and reference architecture for national infrastructure to support AI and other analytics in health research.
Two activities were carried out:
Infrastructure Development Phase
UBased on these 2 projects, we are developing a reference architecture and roadmap for the next 4 years for future research infrastructure in healthcare analytics. These will prepare us for infrastructure development on multiple fronts simultaneously, affording flexibility and minimising critical paths.
Coordinated projects and services will commence in 2025 in collaboration with:
- universities, medical research institutes and national research collaborations
- government data custodians and health systems players
- NCRIS facilities.
The implementation of the roadmap over the next 2 years will create a long-lasting, safe, and flexible AI-enabled research infrastructure with:
- open labs and ’playgrounds’
- the ability for secure data from different jurisdictions to be shared and analysed
- new ways to analyse data (e.g. AI/ML, federated and foundational models) using combined datasets.
In health analytics, patient privacy is fundamental. The future program includes secure underpinning cloud and privacy preserving technology. These will be supported by social and technical resources like training pathways, governance, co-developed standards, frameworks, guidelines, facilitations and communities of practice. The system will support analysis, modelling and decision-support tools in a variety of disease areas with measurable diagnostic improvements, as well as an ecosystem of engaged key partners for knowledge sharing to influence policy and systemic behavioural change.
Collaboration
At the Framework Development Phase, we worked with selected national groups and conducted broad consultation.
The Infrastructure Development Phase will offer further opportunities to participate for researchers, policymakers and innovators. There will also be more opportunities for partnerships with institutions, data custodians and technology service providers.
We invite you to register your interest in the People RDC and keep in touch with us through public consultations.
Target Outcomes
At the Framework Development Phase (the first half of 2024), a Framework Project and a Pathfinder Project were carried out with the following outcomes:
Based on the 2 projects, we are developing a reference architecture and roadmap for advanced analytics in healthcare. It will facilitate meta-specifications for scheduled ARDC services, capabilities and co-investments.
The Infrastructure Development Phase (2025–28) will provide national coordination, capability, partnerships and services supporting national scale analytics of health data.