Final answer:
An attribute in a database is a property or characteristic of a field, describing the data within it. In healthcare databases, attributes could be qualitative data like hair color or blood type. While valuable for descriptive purposes, qualitative data doesn't facilitate mathematical analysis as quantitative data does.
Step-by-step explanation:
An attribute in the context of a database refers to the properties or characteristics of a field which provide more details about the data contained within that field. In the healthcare sector, this could be qualitative data related to a patient such as hair color, blood type, or ethnic group.
Qualitative data are descriptive and are usually categorized by words or letters; for example, hair color might be categorized as black, blonde, or red, and blood type could be AB+, O-, etc. This type of data is essential for various analyses in medical research and patient care, though it may not lend itself to mathematical analysis as easily as quantitative data.