Who We Serve  /  Academic, Research & Community Partners

Academic · Research · Community

Governed access to statewide South Carolina data — for approved research, quality, and community-benefit purposes.

Academic medical centers, universities, quality collaboratives, life-sciences and real-world-evidence users, community-based organizations, 211/CIE networks, and community information exchanges partner with SCeHA to access de-identified and consented data under governed use agreements — supporting research, quality improvement, health equity, and community programs.

HDU
Health Data Utility purposes explicitly include research, evaluation, and policy analysis
HSSC
Statewide research backbone — clinical data store and collaborative infrastructure
SDOH
Social-needs, community-resource, and 211 data flows are core HDU use cases

Who this is for

Research and community partners we serve

Civitas identifies research, evaluation, community collaboratives, community information exchanges, and community-based organizations as core HDU stakeholders. SCeHA operationalizes these use cases with governed data-use agreements.

Academic medical centersUniversities & research centersQuality collaboratives (SCSQC, others)Life-sciences & RWE usersCommunity-based organizationsCommunity information exchanges211 / community-resource networksCommunity care hubsPublic-health researchersPolicy & evaluation partners

The value case

How research and community partners use SCeHA

Governed data-use agreements let approved partners access the specific data required for their purpose — de-identified, limited-dataset, or (with consent) identified — while maintaining privacy and security guardrails.

Statewide research data access

Approved research partners access de-identified or limited-dataset data under IRB-reviewed data-use agreements — dramatically reducing site-by-site data-collection burden.

Quality improvement collaboratives

Collaboratives like SCSQC use aggregate and cohort-level data to identify care variation, benchmark performance, and target improvement.

Real-world evidence generation

Life-sciences partners access longitudinal real-world data under governed agreements — supporting outcomes research, post-market surveillance, and health economics.

Community-benefit and health-equity analysis

CBOs and community coalitions access aggregate community-level indicators for planning, program evaluation, and grant reporting.

Bi-directional CIE integration

Community information exchanges and 211 networks integrate closed-loop referrals and social-needs data with the clinical record.

Civitas HDU Framework

Policy evaluation

State-sponsored evaluators and policy analysts use governed access to assess intervention impact, disparities, and program outcomes.

What you use

Services for governed data users

Access is scoped to purpose and reviewed under SCeHA and HSSC governance — with the same platform security controls as clinical participation.

  • De-identified statewide analytics
  • Limited-dataset and IRB-approved research data
  • Aggregate community and public-health indicators
  • Closed-loop referral and SDOH data flows
  • Governed data-use agreements
  • Alignment with HSSC clinical data store
SCeHA serviceHow you use it
Governed Research AccessIRB-reviewed data-use agreements for de-identified, limited-dataset, or (with consent) identified research.
Aggregate Community IndicatorsPopulation-level dashboards for CBOs, coalitions, and grant reporting.
CIE IntegrationBi-directional integration with 211 and community-resource networks for closed-loop referrals.
Quality Collaborative SupportCohort-level data delivery to state quality collaboratives and improvement partners.
Life-Sciences RWELongitudinal real-world data access under governed commercial data-use agreements.

"HDU integrated data supports comprehensive care delivery, social supports, research, evaluation, public health, and policy analysis — advancing multi-stakeholder, cross-sector needs beyond clinical care delivery."

From the Civitas HDU Framework, 2023

Participation & pricing

Access is priced by scope, purpose, and data use

Because research and community access varies dramatically in scope — from a single-study limited-dataset extract to an ongoing life-sciences RWE relationship — fees are negotiated to reflect the specific data-use agreement and purpose.

Fees shown are 2026 rates. Larger organizations qualify for tiered discounts. Full detail in the current SCeHA HIE Fee Schedule.

Participant type2026 subscription
Academic medical center / universityNegotiated (Other Organizations)
Quality collaborativeNegotiated
Life-sciences / RWE partnerNegotiated commercial data-use agreement
Community-based organization / CIENegotiated — subsidized where funded
IRB-approved single-study extractCost-recovery basis

Evidence base

Framework and evidence base

Civitas HDU — research and community

The national HDU framework explicitly names research, evaluation, community collaboratives, and CIEs as HDU stakeholders and beneficiaries.

Civitas HDU Framework

HIE and community-social services

A growing share of HIEs actively connect with community, social service, and 211 organizations — supporting closed-loop referrals and SDOH data flows.

Healthcare Innovation Group

AJPH public-health HIE evidence

Peer-reviewed research documents public-health surveillance and program-evaluation benefits from active HIE participation.

American Journal of Public Health