From birth certificate until the death certificate, each one accumulates healthcare data. Each time a person has contact with the healthcare some data is produced, be it paper, electronic, or both. 

Healthcare data is any data are collected and used when individuals interact with healthcare systems. This data includes a record of services received, conditions of those services, and clinical outcomes or information concerning those services.

Healthcare data are used:

• Inside healthcare to deliver health care to the individual from whom it was collected.
• Outside of healthcare delivery for that individual, quality assurance, performance measurement, quality improvement, clinical research, public health, and big data health analytics.