Consenting to health record linkage: evidence from a multi-purpose longitudinal survey of a general population

Multivariate logistical regression is used, with whether the respondent gave consent to data linkage or not as the dependent variable. Independent variables were entered as four blocks; (i) a set of standard demographics likely to be found in most health registration data, (ii) a broader set of socio-economic characteristics, (iii) a set of indicators of health conditions and (iv) information about the use of health services.Participants aged 16-24, males and those living in England were more likely to consent. Consent is not biased with respect to socio-economic characteristics or health. Recent users of GP services are underrepresented among consenters.Whilst data could only be linked for a minority of BHPS participants, the BHPS offers a great range of information on people's life histories, their attitudes and behaviours making it an invaluable source for epidemiological research.The British Household Panel Survey (BHPS) is a renowned general topic social survey covering areas such as demographics, household composition, employment, education, training, health, values, opinions and finances. The survey started in 1991 and the same individuals and their households have been followed over time.The BHPS assists with understanding the long-term effects of social and economic change, as well as policy interventions designed to impact upon the general well-being of the UK population. It is widely used in a number of different disciplines, but use in health research has been limited by the lack of objective measures of health. The BHPS collects self-reports of utilisation of health services (General Practitioner and hospital services as well as a range of other health and welfare services such as a health visitor, meals on wheels, social workers, family planning clinic) and of health status which give a holistic summary of the health condition of an individual. However, self-reports and medical records do not always match-up [1-4]. Whilst medical records contain object