Results

 Currently, 49 datasets are described in the OnetoMap™ meta-data repository, owned by OnetoMap LLC, which is constantly updated with new datasets and additional years of data (Table 2) [10]. Included datasets encompass a wide variety of data types, including longitudinal and cross-sectional datasets, gathered from claims, surveys, and electronic health records (EHR), encompassing patient health and socioeconomic demographics, hospital profiles, and physician details (Figure 2).

Search procedure

The OnetoMap meta-data repository is located on GitHub [11], a web-based platform that provides hosting for software development projects using the Git version control system. GitHub is a powerful tool for developers and researchers alike. It provides access to a wealth of information and resources, including code, commits, issues, discussions, packages, and wikis. However, finding the information you need can be a challenge, especially when the repository or organization is large. Therefore, it is fundamental to know how to search effectively on GitHub.

To refine search results, GitHub allows the use of Boolean terms like “OR,” “AND,” and “NOT.” For example, "expenditures OR demographics OR EHR" will search for any of these concepts, while "claims AND hospital level" will find claims databases containing hospital-level data. The term "NOT" can be used to exclude specific keywords from the search, such as "hospital-level NOT claims," which will locate hospital-level data in all sources except claims. A detailed step-by-step search is available on the README page of the OnetoMap meta-data repository [12].

Findability

In the meta-data repository context, findability refers to the ease with which users can locate information or content on the GitHub repository. The findability of the OnetoMap meta-data repository is constantly being improved, aiming to ensure that users can quickly and easily find the data they are looking for without having to spend excessive time searching or navigating. This encompasses various factors, such as the organization and structure of the repository content, the use of search functionality, the labeling and categorization of content, and the use of descriptive and concise headings and titles.

License

All information in the OnetoMap meta-data repository (e.g., datasets description and dictionaries) is shared under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International Public License [13]. However, each dataset listed in the repository retains its own original documentation, license, and Data Use Agreement, meaning they are not openly available. Parties interested in a research collaboration with the OnetoMap group can get in touch through the form available on the OnetoMap meta-data repository README page [12].

Data extraction, processing, and storage

Once data is properly stored, we used the GitHub web platform to host the OnetoMap information (i.e., dataset description and dictionary) (Figure 3). Among the advantages of using GitHub to keep this information is (1) the possibility of version control, GitHub allows users to keep track of changes made to their repositories, making it easy to roll back to previous versions if necessary; (2) its collaborative characteristic, which allows the construction of a synergic network among users to improve the project collectively; and (3) the open-source nature of the repository, meaning information is freely available for anyone to access and potentially contribute.