SA NT DataLink provides high quality data linkage services to support research, policy development, service planning and evaluation.

SA NT DataLink is part of an Australian wide national data linkage network - the Population Health Research Network (PHRN).

The establishment of SA NT DataLink in 2009 as a collaboration between the Northern Territory and South Australia partners supports important population based data linkage research to inform many areas of policy and service development within South Australia and the Northern Territory and nationwide.

Providing access to accurate and unbiased information held by Government agencies and other organisations that can better inform research, policies and practices is central to the role of SA NT DataLink. Research using de-identified data linked for large or entire populations are much more inclusive, representative and unbiased, and also more cost effective and efficient than conventional studies based on sampling. 

 SA NT DataLink:

• enables the linkage of administrative and clinical datasets providing an evidence base for researchers and policy makers to better understand and monitor the population health and wellbeing impacts of policy and investment decisions for South Australians, Northern Territorians and other jurisidictions.

• provides the infrastructure to make available access to information for researchers who wish to collaborate within and across jurisdictions in population based research.

• can provide access to sources of information for analyis to assist the achievement of SA and NT government strategic plan targets and Council of Australian Governments goals.

As part of building the population research infrastructure in South Australia and the Northern Territory, SA NT DataLink has been established with very high levels of security and with practices that protect the privacy of individuals.

The Menzies School of Health Research, located in Darwin, Northern Territory, Australia, joined the SA NT DataLink Consortium on 1 July 2018.

SA NT DataLink is supported by the Population Health Research Network (PHRN) which is a capability of the Australian Government National Collaborative Research Infrastructure Strategy (NCRIS) and Education Investment Fund Super Science Initiative.

Animation: What is data linkage?

SA NT DataLink head office is located in the SAHMRI building on North Terrace, Adelaide, South Australia.