TABLE 2.

Characteristics of Data Integrity Considered as They Relate to the NIMR COVID-19 Test Center

Characteristics	Definition
Completeness	Completeness refers to the availability of all relevant and required information. For example, a patient’s first and last name and address are required, but the middle initial and state or origin are optional. Data can be complete even if optional data are missing.
Accuracy	The degree to which data correctly describes the "real world" object or event being described. In the case of TB cases, the phone numbers provided did not reflect the patients’ phone numbers in the real world and as such were not accurate.
Timeliness	Timeliness considers how up-to-date the information is and how well it can be used for real-time reporting. The need to still transcribe data collected on paper forms at the point of registration creates a delay in real-time reporting.
Validity	Validity measures whether a value conforms to a preset standard, format, or syntax. Patient information like gender, weight, test results, etc. can easily be recorded with the wrong syntax. For example, recording weight in tons as opposed to pounds.
Uniqueness	Uniqueness is a measure of duplication of items in a data set. This measures how often 1 or more patients have had their data duplicated and listed as a separate entity.
Security	The protection of a patient’s data against unauthorized access or corruption is necessary to ensure data integrity. Specific patient data like test results and first line addresses are critical and need to be protected from authorized access.