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Data and reporting

Data and reporting are an important part of managing Australia's blood supply. The NBA uses data and reporting to inform supply planning and ensure blood products are available to the people who need them.

To do this, we liaise with and gather information from governments, suppliers and others about matters relating to blood products and services. We do this as part of our responsibility under the National Blood Authority Act 2003 (Cth)(Opens in a new tab/window).

We manage systems and data on behalf of all jurisdictions and collect data through various Blood Sector Systems, which include:

We also extract and analyse data from these systems and other sources. We provide reports for both internal and external interested parties, and respond to many data requests each year.

Data governance

All our data work is carried out within the guidance set out in our Data and Information Governance Framework (the framework).

The framework includes guidance on how we collect, analyse, report, publish and manage data about the blood sector, as well as our dealings with data stakeholders in the blood sector.

The framework doesn't override any local governance policies for data that the NBA doesn't manage or hold. The framework is a living document that's reviewed when there are changes required by law or by updates to the national blood arrangements.

The framework is designed to provide guidance around:

  • accountability
  • control and obligations for the data held
  • data access and control
  • data storage
  • ethics
  • transparency.

The framework also supports our obligations under the Freedom of Information Act 1982 (Cth)(Opens in a new tab/window). We manage all data containing personal information in line with section 14 of the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth)(Opens in a new tab/window).

Reporting and data requests

We make data available to interested parties in a variety of ways, including through publishing reports and responding to data requests.

Reports

The reports we publish include:

Data requests

Anyone can request data from the NBA. Requests and release of data must meet the conditions set out in the Data and Information Governance Framework.

Your data request must include details, such as:

  • the data you need
  • the reason you need the data
  • how you'll use the data
  • who you'll share the data with (if applicable).

We also need to know:

  • how you'll store the data
  • how long you'll keep the data
  • if and how you plan to release the data publicly.

Please complete our data request form and email it to the Data and Information Team at Data@blood.gov.au.

Once you submit a request, we'll review it internally. In some cases, your request may need an expert or ethics review, or further review and approval by a relevant committee.

We'll seek clarification from you if we have questions, and we’ll advise you of the outcome of your request once we finish our internal process.

Data breach response plan

To meet our obligations under the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth)(Opens in a new tab/window), we have a data breach response plan. This plan supersedes the data breach response process set out in the NBA Data and Information Governance Framework.

Read the NBA Data Breach Response Plan.

Monitoring international blood sector trends

Another of our roles under the National Blood Agreement is to monitor the national and international environment in which the Australian blood sector operates for new technological, clinical, risk or other developments that may impact the national blood supply.

This includes looking out for:

  • news that could impact global supply, demand or pricing, such as corporate changes in our supply chain
  • new product developments and applications
  • trends in regulations or blood practices
  • emerging risks that could put pressure on Australia's blood sector.
     

International trends reports

We publish regular reports on international trends relevant to the Australian blood sector.

Read our Monitoring International Trends Reports.

Contact us

If you have a query about our data and reporting, please contact us.

Last updated: 27 Mar 2024

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