Kaiser Permanente Statement on World Economic Forum's Personal Data Project

Raymond J. Baxter, PhD, senior vice president, Community Benefit, Research and Health Policy, Kaiser Permanente

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Feb 28, 2013, 08:00 ET

OAKLAND, Calif., Feb. 28, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- It is a good time to acknowledge a few things about the vast personal data that have come into being in the past 10 years. These data have the potential to create much more value for each of us – both societal value and economic value – than exists today. But to gain this important increase in value, we must have sensitive and nuanced ways to engage as individuals in the use and reuse of data about us, for each context that we care about. Technology and innovation are advancing faster than societal oversight, so it is up to organizations like Kaiser Permanente, working together with others, to find and demonstrate how to maintain just the right mix of trust mechanisms and data flows for personal data.

Today's leaders have a great head start. As a nonprofit, consumer-focused organization, Kaiser Permanente has for decades listened carefully to our members about data use and reuse. We have earned their trust in our stewardship of some of the biggest and the most sensitive health information stores on the planet. The trust of our members has enabled dramatic breakthroughs in their personal health and wellness, and important medical advances with worldwide impact. We still have a lot to learn from other leaders, just as they can learn from us. We are ready to take the next steps to create sustainable and resilient new models for using data that support unprecedented member access to data on their own health and care, and that serve innovation in care and the creation of new knowledge

The Personal Data Project of the World Economic Forum is a lynchpin in cooperative, collaborative efforts to address the dynamics of personal data and data-driven value creation. We can improve the understanding of individuals of their own data, its use and reuse, by deploying new analytics and enabling more methods for individual engagement. Individuals must understand tradeoffs in the use and reuse of data about them, especially when the data are outside traditional health care contexts and uses. We are happy to be a part of this project and look forward to progress on learning, collaboration, and building new models of value. Big trust drives big data value, and we are in the right place at the right time for next steps.

About Kaiser Permanente

Kaiser Permanente is committed to helping shape the future of health care. We are recognized as one of America's leading health care providers and not-for-profit health plans. Founded in 1945, our mission is to provide high-quality, affordable health care services and to improve the health of our members and the communities we serve. We currently serve more than 9 million members in nine states and the District of Columbia. Care for members and patients is focused on their total health and guided by their personal physicians, specialists and team of caregivers. Our expert and caring medical teams are empowered and supported by industry-leading technology advances and tools for health promotion, disease prevention, state-of-the art care delivery and world-class chronic disease management. Kaiser Permanente is dedicated to care innovations, clinical research, health education and the support of community health. For more information, go to: kp.org/newscenter.

Media Contact: Albert Martinez, work: 510.625.2124, [email protected]

SOURCE Kaiser Permanente