A Secure Data Environment (SDE) is an innovative approach to storing and accessing health and care data. These environments allow approved users to access non-identifiable health and care data for research purposes, which can ultimately save and improve lives. Access is granted through strict approval processes, ensuring that only those with a legitimate need can use the data. Potential users include NHS providers, local authority planners, researchers from both the public and private sectors, and charities. 

SDEs are transforming the way we store and access NHS Health and Social Care data for research and analysis. These platforms ensure the highest standards of privacy and security, allowing approved users to access and analyse data without it ever leaving the secure environment. 

SDEs empower organisations to control: 

  • User Access: Determine who can become a user. 
  • Data Access: Specify which data users can access. 
  • Data Usage: Define what users can do with the data. 
  • Data Removal: Regulate the information users can extract. 

A Push for Privacy and Security 

In 2022, Professor Ben Goldacre’s government review recommended the use of SDEs for healthcare research to enhance data security. This recommendation was adopted into government policy through the “Data Saves Lives” initiative, with funding for the SDE programme starting in 2023. The initiative aims to leverage the potential of data in health and care while maintaining top-notch privacy and ethical standards. 

The NHS Research SDE Network  

The NHS Research SDE Network is on a mission to establish a nationwide system of SDEs by 2025, providing faster access to various types of NHS data. This initiative is set to enable world-class research to prevent, diagnose, and treat major healthcare challenges. Ultimately improving patient care, fostering innovation, and sustaining the NHS for the future. 

The network includes: 

The NHS England SDE Service which is currently in beta. This service helps to support health and social care research across approved organisations. 

11 Sub National NHS-led SDE Teams which cover the entire country. These teams integrate care boards with local universities and industry partners, building on existing collaborations and research partnerships. Each team covers an average population of five million, ensuring research remains connected to local communities and clinical teams. 

Led by national and local experts, the NHS Research SDE Network is poised to become the default route for approved researchers to access health data, driving forward life-saving research and innovation. 

By harnessing the power of SDEs, we can ensure our personal data remains secure while unlocking new possibilities in healthcare research and innovation. 

Realising the Benefits of SDEs 

SDEs use encryption to protect data both at rest and in transit, ensuring that only authorised individuals can access sensitive information. Implementing strict access controls and authentication measures helps prevent unauthorised access and helps to prevent data breaches. 

SDEs also help organisations meet compliance requirements such as GDPR, HIPAA, and other data protection regulations by ensuring data is handled and stored securely. The ability to maintain detailed logs and audit trails helps organisations demonstrate compliance and track data access and usage. 

The process of preparing data so it is ready for analysis research can take time. SDEs enable many different sources of data to be linked, so prepared data can be more easily accessed if needed again. This means that researchers and analysts can access bigger sets of data faster. This will speed up how quickly the NHS can make decisions and the discovery of new treatments. 

One of the most significant features of SDEs is the ability to automate processes. Researchers, who previously spent countless hours on tasks, can now dedicate their efforts to more innovative and impactful activities. This shift not only enhances productivity but also fosters a more dynamic and creative research environment. 

Moreover, the automation of tasks contributes to improved data security. Manual processes are often prone to errors and inconsistencies, which can lead to vulnerabilities. By leveraging automation, SDEs help ensure that data handling is more consistent and secure, reducing the risk of breaches and enhancing overall data integrity. 

Further benefits of SDEs include: 

  • Faster time to turn around research and development projects 
  • Improved public confidence and transparency as organisations will publish and share who access data and for what purpose 
  • Reduction in costs for resources (staff, technical infrastructure, software licences) 

System C’s Innovation Delivery and SDEs 

System C is committed to developing SDEs and has recently been involved with Thames Valley and Surrey to complete a very exciting project. 

Accountability and transparency are particularly important when handling NHS patient data. To fulfil this need, Thames Valley and Surrey SDE asked the System C Innovation Delivery team to develop a SDE administration system to manage who has access to NHS research data and what data they are allowed to see. The SDE Admin System processes users request for access, allows users to clearly describe what data they require and why they require it, as well as keeping an audit of every decision and interaction made with regards to those users. 

Mauro is a web-based solution developed by Oxford University (OU) and System C in collaboration with Oxford University Hospital (OUH) NHS Foundation Trust, in order to document and publicise metadata on various health datasets. It efficiently handles data dictionaries, assets, flows, requests, and standards.   

Having worked with OU and OUH to develop Mauro since 2018, and as a main contributor to the open-source repository, System C’s Innovation Delivery team were able to use this wealth of experience to help the Thames Valley and Surrey SDE implement and adapt Mauro for their data mobilisation needs. 

Next Steps  

If you would like to learn more about Thames Valley and Surrey Secure Data Environment and how System C’s Innovation Delivery team are operating in this space, please watch our latest webinar, which includes a demonstration. 

If you have any questions please get in touch with us today and one of our experts will reach out.