Data governance for wicked problems: A case from the Thai health system

Abstract

This study examined how data governance practices in multi-agency organizations manifest while trying to solve a wicked problem. This study adopted the data governance framework to analyze the Working Group that is responsible for opium addiction and treatment projects in Thailand. This framework comprises five decision domains of data: data principles, data quality, metadata, data access, and data lifecycle. The results showed that the Working Group did not have strong data principles among the relevant agencies and faced local obstacles. This led to uncertainty in the other four areas. It demonstrated, however, some effective outcomes by improvising its specific approach, which considers the relationships between various stakeholders in their dynamic adaptations within the overall data governance process. The Working Group practiced localized framework strategies, which consisted of eight approaches: data consensus in the knowledge network, strong structure, information integrity and cultural awareness, flexibility of organizational integration, dynamic adjustment process, effective information sharing, unlocking stagnations, and data governance cycles. All these strategic approaches compensated for the low performance of the current universal data governance framework.