What is data governance?

What is data governance?

• A. Policies, standards, and processes for data quality, privacy, security, and use.
• B. Management of physical assets only.
• C. Data ownership by a single entity with no policy.
• D. Irrelevant to public health.

Answer: (A)

Data governance is the framework of policies, standards, and processes that ensure data quality, privacy, security, and appropriate use. It defines who owns data, who can access it, and how data are collected, stored, shared, and retired, along with roles like data stewards and data owners. In public health, this means coordinating data from different systems (surveillance, laboratories, clinical care) so that data are accurate, consistent, and timely, while protecting individuals' privacy and complying with laws and ethical guidelines. It also covers data quality management, metadata, data lineage, and security controls, enabling trustworthy analysis and accountable decision making. For example, during a disease outbreak, governance ensures that data from multiple jurisdictions can be combined and used to guide interventions without exposing personal information. The other options miss these essential elements: focusing only on physical assets ignores data as an asset; ownership with no policy ignores governance and accountability; and saying it's irrelevant to public health contradicts its critical role in enabling safe, effective use of health data.

Data governance is the framework of policies, standards, and processes that ensure data quality, privacy, security, and appropriate use. It defines who owns data, who can access it, and how data are collected, stored, shared, and retired, along with roles like data stewards and data owners. In public health, this means coordinating data from different systems (surveillance, laboratories, clinical care) so that data are accurate, consistent, and timely, while protecting individuals' privacy and complying with laws and ethical guidelines. It also covers data quality management, metadata, data lineage, and security controls, enabling trustworthy analysis and accountable decision making. For example, during a disease outbreak, governance ensures that data from multiple jurisdictions can be combined and used to guide interventions without exposing personal information. The other options miss these essential elements: focusing only on physical assets ignores data as an asset; ownership with no policy ignores governance and accountability; and saying it's irrelevant to public health contradicts its critical role in enabling safe, effective use of health data.