About the Consortium

National efforts are underway to build a National Health Information Network (NHIN). These efforts call for collaboration of various organizations and agencies interested in clinical, public health and population health information to promote and protect the public's health.

"Public health and clinical medicine -- prevention and treatment -- must come together along an interactive, integrated continuum, rather than operating in isolated silos of public health-professionals, doctors, hospitals, HMOs and insurers."(1)

Public health is a field that encompasses an amalgam of science, action, research, policy, advocacy and government.(2) While clinical data forms the core of the NHIN population health, environmental, socio-cultural, economic and other data are also needed to support the healthcare decision process, the national health infrastructure, and to provide timely response to a public health threat.

• Click here to view a slide presentation about public health data standards and the PHDSC.
• To download a copy of the 2007 PHDSC Pamphlet, please click  

What is the Consortium?

The Public Health Data Standards Consortium (Consortium) is a non-profit membership-based organization of federal, state and local health agencies; national and local professional associations; academia, public and private sector organizations; international members, and individuals.

Our goal is to empower the agents of health and healthcare with public health information standards to improve individual and community health.

The Consortium provides an organized common voice from public health in the national healthcare standardization efforts. It serves as a mechanism for ongoing representation of public health interests in the implementation of HIPAA and for other data standards setting processes.

• Mission and Strategic Plan
• Our Members
• Organizational Structure of PHDSC
• Board of Directors
• Ongoing Initiatives and Activities
• Join the PHDSC
• Subscribe to PHDSC Listservs
• Our History
• Archives

(1) Yasnoff W, Overhage J, Humphreys B, LaVenture M. A national agenda for public health informatics. J Am Med Inf Ass 2001; 8(6): 535-45.
(2) Information for Health. A strategy for Building the National Health Information Infrastructure. Report and Recommendations from the National Committee on Vital and Health Statistics. 2002. URL: www.ncvhs.hhs.gov

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