Data Quality in the Military Health System: A Research of Data Reliability in the Medical Expense and Performance Reporting System (MEPRS)

摘要

In light of significant data driven programs (Enrollment Based Capitation, Medicare Subvention) within the Department of Defense (Health Affairs), data quality management is becoming an important management principle. A key information system these programs rely on is the Medical Expense and Performance Reporting System (MEPRS). This paper studies the dimension of data reliability within the MEPRS system. It compares and analyzes data from the local MEPRS system at each graduate medical education (GME) medical treatment facility (MTF) for all three services, and compares it to the same data sets residing at the replicated databases at each MTF 5 affiliated central MEPRS system (MEPRS Central or MEQS). Up to now, data reliability is an assumption held by many within DoD. Unfortunately, this has never been comprehsively studied and theefore, never proven. Without reliability verification, the other fundamental data quality principles (accuracy, completeness, and currency) become meaningless. This paper will research MEPRS reliability by comparing the consistency of data between the local and central systems for each GME MTF within DoD at the MTF level (gross summary level), the functional category level (MEPRS 1st Digit), and the work center level (MEPRS 3rd Digit). This study is a necessary fundamental step in the establishment of sound data quality improvement programs for the DoD MEPRS system.