REDCap DB/Survey Tool

REDCap is a financially sustainable, very easy-to-use, and powerful research survey and database management tool. Developed in 2004, with federal funding, REDCap undergoes continuous development by a global consortium led by Vanderbilt University and partially funded by NIH. The REDCap Consortium encompasses 2.9 million researchers at over 6,755 universities and research institutions in 154 countries. No other research survey tool enjoys this level of inter-disciplinary and multi-institutional input and support from the international research community. If you are applying for federal research dollars in support of a study that uses a survey tool, we recommend that you use REDCap. As a consortium member, ETSU provides this fully supported, fully managed, end-to-end research survey tool to ETSU's Faculty, Staff, and Students at no cost. ETSU's licensed REDCap servers conform with ETSU policy for all data types, including PHI. Data on the REDCap servers are backed up daily by ITS. Updates, upgrades, and security patches are fully managed by ITS. Assistance with survey development is available from our full-time REDCap survey manager.

HIPAA and Sensitive Human Data: HIPAA-REDCap is the only survey tool approved for collection of HIPAA data by ETSU. REDCap-Standard is the only survey tool approved for collection of other sensitive human data by ETSU. Here, sensitive data means data with the potential to harm survey respondents and the reputation of the university if a data breach were to occur.

How to cite REDCap in grant applications and manuscripts: https://projectredcap.org/resources/citations/ 

REDCap and COVID response:

• The WHO is using REDCap version of ISARIC’s Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) CRF to manage COVID-19 data obtained through examination, interview and hospital notes.
• The CDC, several institutes of the NIH, and over a dozen state health departments in the U.S. are using REDCap for COVID-19 symptom tracking and monitoring.
• The Pediatric Infectious Diseases Transplant Network (PIDTRAN) is using REDCap to capture epidemiologic and clinical information about ALL cases of pediatric COVID-19 infections in the United States.
• Over 20 states are using REDCap for COVID-19 vaccination enrollment.
• The REDCap Project continues to receive partial federal funding from NIH.

• I am an ETSU Student. Is the REDCap server available to me?

  Yes! Nearly 400 ETSU Students have received accounts and training on ETSU's REDCap survey servers. Student Researchers are subject to the same research regulations as Faculty and Staff. Use of surveys is covered in some classes and students may also have accounts for class use.

REDCap ADVANTAGES FOR RESEARCHERS:

REDCap is easy, intuitive, and user friendly:

• "easy to use" - Brown, CDC, Drexel, Gallaudet, Indiana, Northwestern, Tulane, U. of Chicago, U. of Colorado, U. of Illinois, U. of Kentucky, U. of Michigan, U. of Nebraska, U. of Oklahoma, U. of Pennsylvania, U. of South Alabama, West Virginia University...
• "intuitive" - Duke, Emory, Harvard, Mayo Clinic, Monash, Ohio State, Temple, U. of Alabama, U. of Arizona, U. of Kansas, U. of Minnesota, U. of Missouri, U. of Rochester, U of South Alabama, U. of South Australia, U. of Vermont, U. of Wisconsin...
• "user-friendly" - CUNY, Department of Veterans Affairs, George Mason U, Georgetown U, Lund, New York U, Oxford, Penn State, Stanford, U. of Miami, U. of North Carolina, U. of Southern Denmark, U. of Sydney, U. of Toronto, U. of Washington, Utah State...
• "super easy" - University of Texas.

REDCap features are remarkably suited to the competitive research environment of 2023:

1. A financially sustainable, fully-managed and fully-supported model, based on institutional membership in an international consortium.
2. Developed with federal funding, and led by Vanderbilt and a consortium of the world's leading research institutions, REDCap is immediately recognized by all federal research funding agencies.
3. This fully managed service makes new features available to you as they are released.
4. Survey themes include a template with ETSU's official colors; approved logo branding is easy.
5. Google Captcha option available to discourage bot use on public survey links.
6. Rapid project development; create and design databases and surveys online or offline.
7. Fast and flexible; move from concept to production-level database in a single workday.
8. Automated, seamless data export to Excel, PDF, SPSS, SAS, Stata, R, and others.
9. Data import from external data sources to begin a study or to provide mid-study data uploads.
10. Secure web authentication, data logging, tracking, consistency, SSL encryption, data storage on secure managed server with automated backup.
11. Unlimited global access for collaborative research projects.
12. Smart phone and mobile device responses directly integrated into a secure REDCap database.
13. Offline data collection using the REDCap Mobile App synchronizes with the server when a WiFi or cellular connection becomes available.
14. Print collection instruments as PDF's as an alternate offline collection method.
15. Fully customizable features put you in control of your survey structure.
16. Advanced question features include auto-validation, file uploading, branching logic, calculated fields, signature, dynamic query (SQL), stop actions, and more.
17. Mid-study modifications; the database can be modified at any time during the study.
18. User created validation rules and messages.
19. Customizable user roles and data access groups.
20. Easily manage a contact list of survey respondents or create a simple survey link to email out or post on a website.
21. Multiple instruments (surveys and databases) per project.
22. Supports longitudinal, randomized and multi-arm studies.
23. Data comparison functions; double data entry/blind data entry.
24. Scheduling; built-in project calendar and scheduling module for events and participant visits.
25. Use the REDCap API to have external applications connect to REDCap remotely in a programmatic or automated fashion.
26. Grid control to capture respondent data directly into tabular format.
27. Piping to all previous respondent's info for auto-fill.
28. Data dictionary codebook displays a human-readable version of the project’s data dictionary.
29. Randomization module.
30. Survey queue, to list all of a participant’s surveys on a single page.
31. Can be implemented on AWS to reduce IP risks to large surveys.
32. Generate ad hoc reports with custom queries to view or download.
33. REDCap is currently implemented in 5 languages, with more in the works.
34. Servers and data locations are managed and secured by ETSU.
35. ETSU REDCap is in compliance with IRB and ORSP policies and procedures (as well as HIPAA policy in the case of the ETSU HIPAA REDCap server).

To Get Started with REDCap:

ITS-Research Computing Services manages two REDCap servers for your data acquisition and survey tool needs. The servers provide the ability to build databases or acquire data via surveys. If your survey data are being acquired for publication or presentation, you must have IRB approval. This is the only survey tool that has standing pre-approval for data storage within the ETSU Digital Research Data Storage and Backup Policy. One server, etsuredcap.etsu.edu, is the "standard" REDCap server, available to all faculty, staff and student researchers. The secure REDCap server, etsuredcap-h.etsu.edu, is HIPAA compliant and available to researchers that have approved protocols on file with the Institutional Review Board (IRB). The information below explains how to access the servers and details some interesting features of the resource.

For one-on-one, group, classroom, or Zoom training or for assistance setting up a REDCap account, please contact Vincent Thompson at thompsov@etsu.edu, 423.439.4492, or contact the ITS HelpDesk at 94648.

REDCap Standard (etsuredcap.etsu.edu)

• To request access, please complete the REDCap Account Request Form. Be sure to select ETSURedcap from the drop-down menu. The IRB field is required, so if you are seeking an account for an IRB study that hasn't been approved yet, please type "pending" in this field.  If it is for class use, use "Class".  If it is for administrative use, type "Admin use".
• Once your access has been approved and completed, you will receive an email from Research Computing Services that you may login and begin using the server.
• Collaboration with off-campus researchers IS possible with this server!  Contact Vincent Thompson or the ITS HelpDesk at 94648 for information on how to get access for them.
• REDCap Standard can be used to enter data into a database for storage and minimal analysis. Data export is possible for more complex analysis in statistical packages such as SAS, SPSS, R and others.
• REDCap Standard can also be used to create electronic surveys.
• Training is available in a one-on-one environment, or Vincent Thompson will provide a guest lecture for any class that needs to learn more about REDCap.  
• All REDCap training, consultation and usage is free of charge.
• If your survey instrument constitutes Human Subject Research, ITS-RCS seeks IRB verification before the instrument is put into production.
• If you are certain that your survey instrument is not intended for human subject research (example, an assessment to be administered to students), ITS-RCS will activate your survey instrument without IRB verification. If you are not certain, submit a 129 form to the IRB.
• NOTICE: If you are collecting data for the purposes of human subjects research, review and approval of the project is required by the Institutional Review Board.

REDCap Secure (etsuredcap-h.etsu.edu)

• To request access, please complete the REDCap Account Request Form. Be sure to select ETSURedcap-H from the drop-down menu. You must include an IRB protocol number at this time.
• Research Computing Services will verify current HIPAA online training status and will consult with IRB to confirm the status of the protocol. Once both criteria are met, access will be granted.  Your data MUST contain information deemed as HIPAA information before access is granted.
• As with the standard server, collaboration is possible for off-campus researchers that are listed as a Primary Investigator (PI), co-PI or study staff.
• As with REDCap standard, this server can be used as a data acquisition tool or to send out surveys.
• Consultation, training or classroom guest lectures are all free of charge.
• Research Computing Services verifies all projects posted on this server with IRB before they are moved into production.
• NOTICE: If you are collecting data for the purposes of human subjects research, review and approval of the project is required by the Institutional Review Board.

Introduction to the REDCap Server

REDCap Account Request Form

For more information, email thompsov@etsu.edu or call x94492 on campus (423-439-4492 from off campus) or contact the ITS HelpDesk at 94648.