Identifying Aboriginal data

To identify records as belonging to an Aboriginal group, data routinely collected and managed by the province or territory are linked to Aboriginal group's membership information in the province or territory. A temporary "identifier" is attached to selected records to allow extraction of Aboriginal-specific data. Routine NDSS calculations and data aggregation are then applied, and approved aggregate data files are submitted to Health Canada for national reporting.

A more complex and outstanding issue is how to identify and then create diabetes surveillance data for the urban Aboriginal population that includes non-status Indians.