National Health IT Priorities for Research: A Policy and Development Agenda

The Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC) led the development of National Health IT Priorities for Research: A Policy and Development Agenda, which articulates a vision of a health IT infrastructure that supports alignment between the clinical and research ecosystems. The Agenda, developed in collaboration with federal partners and with input from stakeholders, outlines nine priorities, including concrete steps that stakeholders can take to achieve that vision and enable research to happen more quickly and effectively.

The Agenda is based on findings from a literature review, interviews with experts, and an in-person stakeholder workshop. ONC staff presented early versions of the Agenda during panel discussions at two American Medical Informatics Association conferences and used attendee feedback to refine the goals and priorities.

The Agenda has two overarching goals with nine associated priority areas:

Image that lays out the goals for the National Health IT Priorities for Research: A Policy and Development Agenda Goal 1: Leveraging High-Quality Electronic Health Data for Research Priority 1: Improve Data Quality at the Point of Capture Priority 2: Increase Data Harmonization to Enable Research Uses Priority 3: Improve Access to Interoperable Electronic Health Data Goal 2: Advancing a Health IT Infrastructure to Support Research Priority 4: Improve Services for Efficient Data Storage and Discovery Priority 5: Integrate Emerging Health and Health-Related Data Sources Priority 6: Improve Methods and Tools to Support Data Aggregation Priority 7: Develop Tools and Functions to Support Research Priority 8: Leverage Health IT Systems to Increase Education and Participation Priority 9: Accelerate Integration of Knowledge at the Point of Care

The strategies and actions are intended to address relevant data, tools, and infrastructure needs over the next 3 to 5 years, enabling researchers to pursue more complex questions and make faster, more reliable discoveries.