Background
The §21 dataset is a German benchmarking dataset mandated by the law on hospital reimbursement (Paragraph 21: "Übermittlung und Nutzung von Daten - des Gesetzes über die Entgelte für voll- und teilstationäre Krankenhausleistungen" (Krankenhausentgeltgesetz - KHEntgG)). It is primarily used to derive the German inpatient billing system based on Diagnosis Related Groups (DRGs) and has to be provided by every German hospital on a yearly basis. It is thus supported by all hospital patient administration and billing systems established in Germany. Due to its standardization and high availability, the §21 dataset has been established as a source dataset for benchmarking projects and other regional and national collaborations. It is thus also an ideal candidate for a "quick win" i2b2 implementation, as its format is well-structured and documented and it can be produced easily by any German hospital.
It should be noted, however, that the §21 dataset is primarily reimbursemenet-oriented, which may limit its usefulness in the research area.
The §21 dataset is based on a standard delimited ("CSV") format with the following files and contents of interest, among others (full specification in German language)
- fall.csv: encounter-related data and patient demographics
- fab.csv: transfer history within encounter
- icd.csv: diagnosis codes based on ICD10-GM catalog (GM: German Modifications)
- ops.csv: procedure codes based on German OPS medical procedures catalog
- drg.csv: diagnosis related group codes
The drg.csv file is not part of the standard §21 dataset, but can be generated from the other files using a certified DRG grouping software.
