The Promise and Potential Perils of Big Data for Advancing Symptom Management Research in Populations at Risk for Health Disparities.

The Promise and Potential Perils of Big Data for Advancing Symptom Management Research in Populations at Risk for Health Disparities. Annu Rev Nurs Res. 2016;34(1):247-60 Authors: Bakken S, Reame N Abstract Symptom management research is a core area of nursing science and one of the priorities for the National Institute of Nursing Research, which specifically focuses on understanding the biological and behavioral aspects of symptoms such as pain and fatigue, with the goal of developing new knowledge and new strategies for improving patient health and quality of life. The types and volume of data related to the symptom experience, symptom management strategies, and outcomes are increasingly accessible for research. Traditional data streams are now complemented by consumer-generated (i.e., quantified self) and "omic" data streams. Thus, the data available for symptom science can be considered big data. The purposes of this chapter are to (a) briefly summarize the current drivers for the use of big data in research; (b) describe the promise of big data and associated data science methods for advancing symptom management research; (c) explicate the potential perils of big data and data science from the perspective of the ethical principles of autonomy, beneficence, and justice; and (d) illustrate strategies for balancing the promise and the perils of big data through a case study of a community at high risk for health disparities. Big da...
Source: Annual review of nursing research - Category: Nursing Tags: Annu Rev Nurs Res Source Type: research