How the Integrated Health Informatics Datalab is Shaping the Future of Health Research—and Why It Matters

The future of transformative health research depends on the ability to access and connect vast amounts of data. For years, patient data has been siloed in different systems, making it difficult for researchers to get the full picture. But Integrated Health Informatics Datalab (IHID), developed through a key partnership with Genome British Columbia (Genome BC), is changing that. 

“Genome BC recognizes the importance of data integration. That is why we were eager to partner with PHC Ventures on this first-of-its-kind project in BC,” says Dr. Zsuzsanna Hollander, Director, Data Science at Genome BC. 

IHID is an advanced platform that integrates clinical and imaging data, giving researchers access to health information in a secure and streamlined environment. By combining data from multiple sources, IHID has the potential to transform how we approach medical research and, ultimately, patient care. 

Once IHID was established, the PHC Ventures team wanted to test it with active research projects. The goal was to find out what worked and where the platform could be improved. Genome BC was an obvious partner given their robust data strategy and their interest in developing a funding program to help researchers analyze existing genomics data integrated with health care records.  

Genome BC provided the funding for researchers, and PHC Ventures facilitated access to the data. Once the projects were funded, they worked closely with the research teams to collect requirements, review available data and discuss how much access researchers needed. 

The Power of Partnership: Genome BC’s Role in Shaping IHID 

The partnership led to the launch of the Data Access, Integration and Analysis (DAIA) program in 2022. The program was intended to provide researchers with the opportunity to analyze and compare existing genomic data, for example, blood samples taken for a research study, with PHC’s clinical and imaging data from the same patient. The integration of these types of data can help researchers uncover new insights that address clinical needs and provide benefits to the BC health care system. Four projects were funded (see sidebar), enabling researchers to put IHID through its paces.  

The evolution of IHID is attributable to invaluable feedback provided by PHC Centre for Heart Lung Innovation’s researchers that helped refine the platform. What began as a tool designed to facilitate the sharing of health data quickly became a much more powerful system, capable of not only streamlining research but also shaping the future of how data can be used in health care. 

The partnership with Genome BC has been instrumental in IHID’s evolution, particularly in the development of IHID 2.0.  As researchers funded by Genome BC began using the tool to integrate data with clinical health records, they identified several areas where the system could be improved; feedback that was integral to IHID 2.0. 

The primary concern raised by DAIA program researchers was the cumbersome process of accessing and interacting with health data. In the earlier version, researchers had to manually import and export data from various systems, a process that was time-consuming and prone to errors. This input from DAIA researchers led to a fundamental shift in how data is accessed on the platform.  

But insights from the Genome BC’s DAIA program didn’t stop there. Researchers pointed out that they needed more tailored data—precise information that was relevant to their research questions, rather than sifting through all available data. IHID 2.0 introduced a filtering system that curates data to meet specific research needs, reducing the time spent on data discovery. By focusing on the practical needs of researchers, IHID 2.0 has become a tool that not only stores data but actively supports the research process. IHID 2.0 now provides the research community with access to 1.5 million deidentified and anonymized patient records and almost 3 million digital test results.  

“We really appreciated the time the PHC Ventures team spent with each of the project teams to understand their needs and make sure they could support those needs as much as the IHID platform allowed,” says Dr. Hollander. 

Automation and Scalability 

IHID’s evolution has included automating processes that were once manual and time-intensive.  What used to take days, weeks, or even months to process can now be done faster —whether it’s onboarding a new user, curating data for research, or handling system monitoring and error logging. This shift to automation not only improves the efficiency of the platform but also allows researchers to focus on what matters most: their work. 

“One of the advantages of IHID is that it saves time. In parallel with ethics approval, we were able to speed up researchers’ access to data by streamlining the privacy and security approval process,” says Kristina Jelaskoff, Director, Digital Programs & Advisory Services, PHC Ventures. 

In the future, when researchers need data they will no longer have to manually request and wait for the data to be prepared. This type of automation, combined with the platform’s ability to securely manage and deliver data, is a leap forward for health research. 

The Future of IHID: A Focus on Data and AI 

The development of IHID 3.0 is already underway, with the goal of expanding the platform’s capabilities even further. One of the main objectives is to increase the availability of longitudinal health data, which will allow researchers to study the long-term health trajectories of patients.  

“One of the key takeaways was the need for more data integration, or at minimum data sharing agreements, between health authorities,” continues Dr. Hollander. “Our project teams had full access to relevant PHC patient data sets. However, if a patient went to a private lab or another health care facility for tests, that data was missing from their record.” 

With feedback from Genome BC, IHID has already started to incorporate data from a variety of sources. The addition of this data will allow for a more comprehensive understanding of health outcomes and help researchers connect the dots between different types of patient data. 

“Genome BC’s DAIA program gave us the opportunity to test whether the IHID platform is suitable for our clinicians to re-analyze medical imaging data and aggregate it with clinical data for research and patient monitoring purposes. We are hopeful that this system will provide a more efficient, and less error-prone way of collecting patient records,” explains Dr. Zachary Laksman, Assistant Professor, Department of Medicine and the School of Biomedical Engineering, UBC, Director of the St. Paul’s Hospital Atrial Fibrillation Clinic and Director of St. Paul’s Hospital Inherited Arrhythmia Program.  

Another key aspect of IHID 3.0 is the integration of artificial intelligence (AI) tools. As the platform continues to evolve, it will not only support research but also move into clinical applications. Once tested on real-world data through IHID, models can be validated before being used in clinical settings. If successful, this could lead to AI tools that are integrated into clinical practice, potentially revolutionizing diagnosis and treatment. 

"Data integration through AI and genomics is transforming healthcare innovation. By ensuring that data is securely, efficiently, and ethically connected across our health system, we can empower researchers and clinicians to make smarter, faster decisions for better patient outcomes." 
— Dr. Federica Di Palma, Chief Scientific Officer & VP, Research, Genome BC 

The Broader Impact: Transforming Health Care with Data 

“IHID has drastically improved the electronic health records access for research. Thanks to IHID, we can now work with electronic health records data more quickly, efficiently, and effectively, allowing us to take a step closer to improving patients' quality of life and health outcomes.” 
—Dr. Linda Lapp, PROOF Centre of Excellence, Centre for Heart Lung Innovation (HLI), University of British Columbia, Senior Statistician Provincial Health Services Authority. 

The partnership with Genome BC has helped IHID evolve from a basic data-sharing tool into a comprehensive platform that supports both research and clinical applications. What makes IHID so promising is its ability to break down the barriers between different types of health data—genomic, clinical, imaging—and provide researchers with the tools they need to turn that data into actionable insights. 

"Streamlined and comprehensive access to curated clinical data, with appropriate privacy and ethical oversight, is absolutely critical for translational research in the health domain. PHC's ongoing commitment to developing and supporting platforms such as IHID, represents an outstanding example of how health care providers and researchers can better work together to generate new knowledge and transform the lives of patients, both locally and world-wide." 
— Dr. Scott J. Tebbutt, Principal Investigator and Director of Education with the Centre for Heart Lung Innovation (HLI), the Chief Executive Officer of the Prevention of Organ Failure (PROOF) Centre of Excellence

As IHID continues to evolve, it holds the potential to become a central part of how health care organizations access, share, and analyze data. In the long term, this could transform not only the pace of research but also how we approach patient care. With AI-driven diagnostics, more personalized treatments, and faster development of new therapies, IHID is a clear example of how data—when used effectively—can reshape the future of health care.