**Transcript of Cyberseminar**

**VIReC Database and Methods Seminar**

**Research Access to VA Data**

**Presenter: Linda Kok, MA**

**November 4, 2013**

*This is an unedited transcript of this session. As such, it may contain omissions or errors due to sound quality or misinterpretation. For clarification or verification of any points in the transcript, please refer to the audio version posted at www.hsrd.research.va.gov/cyberseminars/catalog-archive.cfm or or contact the VIReC help desk at****virec@va.gov****.*

Moderator:Welcome everyone to VIReC’s Database and Methods Cyber Seminar entitled “Research Access to VA Data.” Thank you to CIDER for providing technical and promotional support for this series. Today’s speaker is Linda Kok, Technical and Privacy Liaison for the VA Information Resource Center VIReC at Hines VA Hospital. Questions will be monitored during the talk and will be presented to Mrs. Kok. A brief evaluation questionnaire will pop up when we close the session. If possible, please stay until the very end and take a few moments to complete it. I am pleased to welcome today’s speaker, Linda Kok.

Linda Kok:Hi, Arika. Thank you, Arika and Heidi and welcome to all those who are listening. Other sessions in VIReC’s Database and Methods Series are about VA data and how they are used in our research. Today’s session is different. Today we will look at how to get access to data to use in your research. It has been just eight months since the last presentation of this seminar, “Research Access to Data,” but, the environment for getting data, for getting information about data and data access has changed significantly in the last few months. 

In this session, we will look first at determining whether a project is research or operations. We will show you where to look on the VHA Data Portal to find out how to request VA data sources most frequently used by VA researchers. We will look at request processes for several types of VA data, and we will review two examples of how to complete VA Form 9957, the form required for most data sources in the VHA’s Data Access Request Tracker, or DART. Not only is there a new source of information about VA data, there is also a new emphasis on developing supportive partnerships between research and healthcare operations, including partner-based research. Some partner- based projects are research, while others may be quality improvement or other non-research studies. It is important to be able to distinguish research and non-research projects since, as you know, HIPAA applies very specific requirements to research use of protected health information.

To clarify the differences, the Office of Research Oversight, ORO, developed a decision chart to help us in determining whether a project is research or operations. If you look at all of the questions, and I know you cannot see them all from here, you will, when you get to the bottom of this chart, you will be able to know for sure whether something is research or not research. Links to this chart and to corresponding VHA handbook, VHA operations activities that may constitute research are provided in the resource slides at the end of the presentation. 

Next, we will look at the VHA Data Portal to see where to look for data access information. We will pause here for a minute for you to indicate whether you have used the portal to find information on data access. Heidi?

Moderator:Yes, your results are pouring in.

Linda Kok:Oh, good, thank you.

Moderator:We will give it just a few more seconds and then I will broadcast the results and let you read out what those results are. But, they are still coming in, so we will give it a few more seconds here. Okay, looks like things are slowing down if you would like to read through that there.

Linda Kok:Okay. I am not seeing them on my screen.

Moderator:Ah, if you are in full screen mode, you will not be able to see those, so I will read through them here. All right. It looks like we are around 38% have used the VHA Data Portal, and around 63% have not used the VHA Data Portal.

Linda Kok:Okay. Well, that is an excellent, I think, division. We will have some people who have been there, may not have quite gone to the pages that we are looking at today, and many who have not been there yet. So, I think that is excellent. We have the right audience.

This slide shows the home page for the VHA Data Portal, which went live on the VHA intranet site in June of this year. The goal is for the portal to become a one-stop shop for data user needs by providing information about data sources, data tools and information systems. The portal is a collaborative effort of four offices, VHA National Data Systems, or NDS, VA Information Resource Center, that is us at VIReC, the VA Informatics and Computing Infrastructure, VINCI, and the VHA Data Quality Program. It combines information from the VIReC website and the websites of the other offices to eliminate duplication and consistency and to support timely updates as the data environment changes. To find information about data access information, you can click on the Data Access in the top navigation as shown here. There are several links available. We are going to focus on Operations Access, Preparatory to Research Access and Research Access.

This slide shows the Operations Access page on the portal. Although, this is a presentation on research access to data, we wanted to show those of your who may have an operations partnered project where you can find instructions on how to request data for an operations project. Note in orange that for performance improvement, quality improvement or quality assurance, you should always use these instructions, and not use the research instructions. On this and other Data Access pages to follow, you will find an overview, links to data access request processes and for each data source, links to tables identifying the specific data request process for that data source.

This slide shows the Data Access page for Preparatory to Research data. Prep to Research Access includes access to both aggregated data and protected health information needed in order to prepare a research protocol, or a research proposal. Although, IRB, or R&D committee approvals are not required for Prep to Research data access, VA data stewards do require certain forms and documents. Links to the request processes are highlighted here. You will find the information that you need for Preparatory to Research Access in those links. 

This is a screenshot of the Data Access page for approved VA research projects. Just below the overview, I have highlighted the types of data access granted for research. There are two, data access to complete data files, and data extracts created specifically for your research project. Some data sources are available with one, and some are available with others. It also depends on the platform in which you use the data. As with other Data Access pages, this one includes links to instructions for data access request processes, including DART, CUPS POC, Customer User, Local Customer User Provisioning System request process, and the VA/CMS Data for Research request process, which we will describe in later slides. The highlighted section at the bottom of the slide shows Open and Close buttons for the data sources described on the Data Portal.

This slide shows the list of data sources and data access tools found at the bottom of the Research Access portal page that we were just looking at. Included are data on the Austin mainframe. It is called the Austin Information Technology Center, or AITC mainframe. The CDW domain data are here, as well as the Decision Support Systems web reports and Decision Support System National Data Extract data, Medical SAS Inpatient & Outpatient datasets are here, and the Vital Status files are here. Also on the list are the data access tools. These tools include CPRS, the Computerized Patient Record Systems we use in the hospital, and VistAWeb and CAPRI, the Compensation and Pension Records Interchange. These are different ways to view records in the VA’s electronic health record one patient at a time. CPRS allows you to view records for patients receiving care in your home facility, while VistAWeb and CAPRI provide a view of records for patients at multiple VHA facilities. Also listed under the tools are the processing platforms where you can store and use data for your projects. These include the AITC mainframe, the SAS/GRID at VINCI, your local VA network server, or VINCI workspaces.

When we click on the Open/Close buttons for the Medical SAS Inpatient & Outpatient datasets on that page, or MedSAS data as they are sometimes called, we will see a table identifying the associated request processes with the data source, for each data source. The process depends on several characteristics of the data needed. I will start at the left-hand column, the first column and move right. The first column contains the Level of Access needed. Level of Access describes whether the data needed includes patients from your local station or facility only. This is called Local level data. The data for patients are more than one facility in your VISN is called VISN level data, and the data from facilities in more than one VISN or even all VISNs is called National level data. The second column is the identifier. Here it is just a real or scrambled SSN. The third column is the Functional Task Code, which is used to grant access to data on the mainframe for combinations of specific levels of access as identifiers. The fourth column is the Data Source Location, either AITC mainframe or CDW. This is where the data are stored. The MedSAS data or Inpatient/Outpatient datasets are available on both platforms. Fifth is the Data Format. By definition for SAS datasets, this is SAS. For other datasets, other data are available in SQL. Sixth is the Type of Access, we mentioned this earlier. This can be the direct access to full datasets or extracts of data specific for a project. And, in the last column is the link to the data request process for the data described on that row. So, for National, Real SSN data on the AITC mainframe, you go to the DART Request Process. As you can see, the MedSAS data with scrambled SSN, or even with Real SSNs for local patients are requested through the local facility, CUPS Point of Contact. The other MedSAS data here are requested through DART.

Next, we will look at data request processes in more detail. There are several data request processes described on the portal. Those shown here cover much of the data frequently used in VA research. You can get to each of these in two ways on the portal, from each Data Access page, Operations, Prep to Research, or Research, or through the link on the Data Access Request Process table for any data source, such as the ones we just looked at for MedSAS data. 

First we will discuss the CUPS Point of Contact data request process. The CUPS POC is the simplest process. It takes three steps. The person who needs access to the data on AITC mainframe completes an electronically signed VA Form 9957, a link is provided to the form and instructions on the portal page. Have the form approved and signed electronically by the requester’s supervisor, and depending on the requirements at your local facility, other local approvers. Then send or deliver the signed form to your facility CUPS POC, who is sometimes the ISO at your facility. A link to the list of CUPS POCs is provided on the access request page. The requester will receive an email containing the assigned AITC mainframe time-sharing option or TSO, login ID and temporary password. Access to data on the AITC mainframe requires a functional task code specific to the data source level of access and identifier. Note that the functional task codes from each of the data sources are shown (oops) in the table at the bottom of the portal page. I apologize. I forgot to press down while I was talking.

We often get questions about how to fill out the 9957 form. This slide shows the form completed for mainframe access to local, VISN or National MedSAS data with scrambled SSNs. I had hoped to provide you this in a handout, but if you would like a copy of this example, please send me an email. I will just mention a couple of points where there are commonly asked questions. In Section 1 at the top, in the middle box, is Type of Access. For the mainframe, this is ZOS right here that is the operating system. And, in the box to the right is the Type of Action. This is to tell them what kind of account to set up. Are you going to modify an existing customer account, or are you going to create a new account? You only use create new customer if this is the first time this individual will access the mainframe. In Section 3 towards the middle of the page, you describe the source, data source requested – in this case the MedSAS data – and the identifier – in this case scrambled SSN – and include the functional task code. Do not complete the 9957 form for CUPS request process for individuals who do not need mainframe access. For example, for the PI if someone else will access the data on the mainframe. Note in Section 4, the electronic signatures are required and do not hand-write any information on the form.

Next we will look at the request process for DART, the Data Access Request Tracker. We will look at three DART data request topics, the DART Request Process Page on the portal, data sources and data access tools, and required documents. This screenshot shows the DART Request Process page on the data portal. The instructions for submitting a DART request begin with launching the DART application, completing the project information screen and checking off the data sources needed for your project. With this done, DART will then display a list of the forms and documents required for the specific data you selected. The top arrow in green points to the list of VA research documents, including the research protocol, R&D committee and IRB approval letters, the HIPAA patient authorization or waiver of authorization, the sample informed consent or waiver of informed consent. Some or all of these might be required, depending on the data sources you request. The link highlighted in red that says “New” is the new ORD approved HIPAA waiver of authorization template, which you can download here for your use when you submit your protocol for IRB approval. The bottom green arrow points to links in the data request form that may be required, depending again on the data sources you need. Some are only for one type of data source and some are for several. Once you have completed the forms required on the DART page for your specific data sources, you can launch DART again, return to the request you began, upload the required documents and forms and submit your request.

This slides shows the DART Sources Selection page. Here we have created two columns. The left is the top of the page, and the right shows the bottom of the page as it is seen in DART. It is on this screen in DART that you will select the data you need for your project. First, you are asked to indicate the data storage location. This will be either VINCI or your local VA network server where you will store and use the data. Next you will indicate whether you need real or scrambled SSN identifiers for your data. You may also choose data containing PHI, but no real or scrambled SSNs. This is available specifically for CDW data, so that you do not have to get either the real or scrambled SSNs if you do not need them. Then you check the datasets needed in these checkboxes. In SQL format for CDW, you can get the production in raw domains, the DSS NDEs, the TIU notes – that stands for Text Integrated Utility notes – and that is, contains most of the data, the text notes in the Vista system, but not all. It does not include radiology notes. And, the Vital Status files. In SAS format from Corporate Data Warehouse, you can get BIRLS, DSS (whoops), BIRLS, MedSAS, Vital Status files, but you cannot any longer get DSS legacy files. This DART page will soon be updated to remove the DSS NDE legacy SAS files. These are no longer available from CDW or anywhere else. Extracts of the same data in SQL tables are available for research from CDW. Next are the SAS datasets on the mainframe. These include BIRLS, the MedSAS data and the Vital Status files. Other data requested through DART and tools are the CAPRI and VistAWeb tools that we looked at, learned about earlier. DSS Web Reports and VSSC Web Reports, the Homeless Registry, Legacy Datasets such as those in VISN 21, and the OEF/OIF Roster File. You can also indicate that you would like access to the SAS Grid on VINCI on this page. 

Again, we will look at the 9957 form, because it is required for many of the data sources requested through DART. Here is another example. This one is for scrambled SSNs, for production domains and for real SSN access to the mainframe MedSAS data, mainframe Vital Status data, CAPRI and VistAWeb, which are always real SSN access, and the OEF/OIF Roster. In Section 3 here, you indicate real or scrambled SSN for each source and include the name of the dataset as it is shown on the DART dataset selection page. So, whatever, how you check the box in the screen before, you just list the datasets by those names on the 9957 form. The form is available through a link on the DART Request Process portal page, and we will be happy to send you the example shown here if you send me an email. .

Now we will look at Data Steward-Specific request processes. The first will be Patient Care Services. We will also look at Pharmacy Benefits Management, which is PBM, and the VIReC VA/CMS (Medicare & Medicaid) request processes. Earlier on Slide 13, we looked at the request process table for Medical SAS Inpatient and Outpatient data. Here we want to look at three other data sources. These tables can be viewed on the Research Access page of the portal by clicking on the Open/Close buttons next to the data source names. This is the Open/Close buttons. We have these opened. We will focus on three of the tables on this slide, the National Prosthetics database, or NPPD data at the top, the PBM data, the Pharmacy Benefits Management data, and the VA/CMS Data for Research from VIReC on the bottom table.

The NPPD and the PBM data contain the same columns, the Level of Access, National access, National level of access for both, the Patient Identifier here. PCS has a specific Patient Identifier, and PBM, you can use choose either real or scrambled SSN. Excuse me, I am going to have a drink of water. Excuse me. The data formats for both of these is the same, and the PCS will provide you with custom analytic datasets, which are extracted from the PCS National Prosthetics Patient Database. And, PBM data, PBM will provide you with extracts from the Patient Benefits Management Database. And, the request process here will link you straight into the request process for PCS data or PBM data, and we will move on to those next. First we will look at the VA/CMS table. The Level of Access here is National, the Data Source Location is VIReC, the Format is SAS, and the Type of Extract is a custom data extract for your project. And also, again, there is a link to the, directly to the VA/CMS Data for Research Request Process. 

We will look at the details of the PCS request process next. This slide shows the type of data provided by Patient Care Services. Prosthetic Services, National Prosthetics Patient Database is the only one currently included on the portal. But, the request process begins the same for each of these types of data available from PCS. PCS prepares a custom analytic file for each data request. The other PCS data includes Care Management, Diagnostic Services, GEC, or Geriatric and Extended Care data, Specialty Care Services data, Mental Health Services, NCHPD, which is National Center for Health Promotion and Disease Prevention data, Primary Care data, Rehab Services data, Spinal Chord Injury/Disorders Services data and Telehealth data.

Patient Care Services requires a Data Transfer Agreement between PCS and the investigator for each request. There are different DTA requirements for research studies, quality improvement studies and program evaluation studies. Data dictionaries and instructions for requesting the data are available on the PCS SharePoint sites, which is shown here: vaww.infoshare.va.gov, and we will have that link on our resources page, too. Julie Strickland is the new point of contact for Patient Care Services, and if you have questions for Julie, questions can be sent to the email address shown here on this slide.

Next, we will look at the data processes for Pharmacy Benefits Management data. This screenshot provides instructions for requesting pharmacy data from PBM. What appears here is what you see when you click on the link in the Data Request Process for PBM table. This is what comes up, this screen. And, to get started on your PBM data request, mail a copy of your IRB approval form with a summary of your study protocol to the PBM address shown here on the screen. Click on the Submit button, and complete the form that appears. This slide shows the PBM data request form. This is what appears when you click Submit on the previous page. This slide, the top half of the form asks for contact and other project information, and the bottom half is for you to describe the PBM data requested. So, you can explain exactly what kinds of data that you need here. Once completed, you click on the Submit button at the bottom of the form. The URL for this form is included on the resources slide.

Finally, we turn to VIReC’s request process for VA/CMS or Medicare & Medicaid data. VIReC distributes Medicare and Medicaid and United States Renal Data Systems, or USRDS data for use by approved research projects. You can link to this screen from VHA data portal Research Access page table for VA/CMS data, or you can go directly to it through the VIReC website. On this screenshot, I would like to highlight the Pre-Request Consultations service. VIReC requires a review of your data request forms, before you have the approving signatures to make sure the forms have been completed fully and correctly. We are happy to provide a personal consultation on the phone to review the forms and answer any questions you have. We have found that requests that go through the Pre-Request Consultation get through the request review process more quickly and receive their data sooner. So, we would like to encourage you to ask for a Pre-Request Consultation. There are two request processes for VA/CMS data as show here. We have a standard request process for VA/CMS repository data. Those are data that are already held by VA/CMS for distribution, and we have a special request process for VA/CMS non-repository data. These are data that VIReC does not hold and an example is Medicare data with real SSN identifiers for non-veteran study cohorts. So, if you are looking for a comparison group of veterans and non-veterans and you have real SSN access for some of your study cohorts that are not veterans, you can get their VA/CMS data through the special request process. So, just a note, the VA/CMS data for non-research use, there is a link there to the Medicare and Medicaid Analysis Center, MAC, which is a field office of the Assistant Deputy Undersecretary for Health for Policy and Planning, also known as the ADUSH office, and MAC is the sole source for data, CMS data for non-research purposes. So, you can go directly to the Medicare, the MAC request process there.

To request VA/CMS data from VIReC, you would complete and submit the request forms for review before they are signed, as I just mentioned. Once VIReC has reviewed the forms, you can have them signed by the appropriate local officials, including your supervisor, the associate chief of staff for research, the privacy officer and the information security officer, or ISO. The request forms are listed here. There is Project Information, Data Security Compliance Checklist, a Data Description, and an Agreement to Provide Secure Storage at the end of the approved research, when you close your project. And, there are Rules of Behavior Agreements for the people who have access to the data. You will also, required is the initial Research and Development Committee approval letter, and the initial IRM approval letter. We also require the most recent continuing review approval letter. The URL for the standard request process is shown here.

For today’s session, we have an added a non-data access slide to provide a brief introduction to VINCI, the VA Informatics and Computing Infrastructure, for those of you who may be new to the VA. We will stop here for a poll to see, to have you indicate whether you have ever requested a VINCI workspace for yourself or for your research project. Heidi.

Moderator:Yes, responses are coming in. We will give people a few more seconds and then I will read the results out here. Okay, it looks like things have slowed down a bit. We have about 30% of the audience who have requested and about 70% that have not.

Linda Kok:Okay. Thank you, thank you, Heidi. Well it sounds like about the same as we had for the portal. It is good to see that there are people who have been up there requesting VINCI workspaces, too. That is a good sign.

This slide shows the initial screen that you will see when you launch your VINCI workspace. You can request a VINCI workspace by sending an email to the VINCI help desk. VINCI is a very large, secure, analytic platform that provides access to a variety of analytic tools at no cost to your project. This includes SAS, Stata here, NVivo if you are doing qualitative research, SPSS, and ArcMap if you are doing geographic. The SAS Grid is also available for intensive data crunching using SAS from VINCI, once you have to access to a VINCI workspace. Data services are provided by VINCI data managers who will work with you to help determine your CDW data needs before you submit a data request, and work with you again once your request for CDW data is approved. They will fulfill your request by generating, helping you to generate your cohort and extract the data that you requested and place it into your VINCI workspace. You can also have them deliver it to your local VA network server if you do not want to use a VINCI workspace. VINCI Center provides information about CDW data, including data not yet in the CDW production domain, such as the CDW raw data. And, the VINCI Central URL is included on the resources slide.

Here we have the resources slide. This shows links for the ORO chart that we discussed initially, that tells you the difference between research and operations, Handbook 1058.05, which is the operations activities that may constitute research, the VHA Data Portal home page, the DART Data Access page from the portal, the PCS Data Access page, the PBM Data Access page, and the VINCI Overview page and VINCI Central, which is a very good place for you to go if you are working with VINCI.

This slide provides contact information for services provided by VIReC. The VIReC website continues to provide comprehensive information about VHA data, including overviews, proc content, frequencies and data quality information that may help you determine what data to use for your study. And, it links you directly to the appropriate portal page for data access information. VIReC’s website can be found at virec.research.va.gov. The VIReC Help Desk provides direct one-on-one assistance from a VIReC staff member to help you find the information about data or data access that you need. You can email us at VIReC@va.gov, or you can phone the Help Desk at 708-202-2413. Also, VIReC also provides and hosts the HSRData Listserv, which is a forum of over five hundred data users, managers, and stewards where you can ask data questions or share your knowledge to help others. I think it is also a great source of information on how others are using data, particularly, CDW data, which is new to many of us. You can join HSRData Listserv on the VIReC website. There is a link right on the home page.

And, now, thank you for your attention. It is time for questions. I think we have 20 minutes left for questions. Erica?

Moderator:Yes. First question, you comment on the time required to obtain approval and access to data, both for pre-research and research.

Linda Kok:Excuse me? What was the last part, could you repeat the last part?

Moderator:Sure.

Linda Kok:You went, the time for review approval?

Moderator:Right, and access data, both for pre-research and research.

Linda Kok:Oh, for prep to research, okay. Well, this varies greatly, depending on the data sources, and depending on what you are asking for. The biggest thing that will slow down a data request is asking for real SSN access. If you do not need real SSN access, real SSNs to link to an external data source or to link with data from the EHR or data you have collected directly from the patient, then you really need to just not ask for it. Because, it goes through a whole separate review, especially in the DART system and that can delay your process, the review and approval process. The preparatory to research access process I think has been, has been speeded up a little bit because of the having the information up on the portal. People know that they can go to that site and follow the explanation there and know exactly what they are supposed to be providing and to whom they are supposed to be submitting their request. So, those have been speeded up a little bit. For a, if you want to get scrambled SSN data on the mainframe for the MedSAS and other kinds of datasets that are there, other than the Vital Status file, you can get that access pretty quickly through the CUPS Point of Contact request process. But, if you want real SSNs, again, for the AITC mainframe, or the CDW data or any others, then you submit your request through DART for those datasets and that takes a little longer. I hope that answered the question.

Moderator:Great. Here is another question. Where can I find the VHA operations activities that may constitute research chart.

Linda Kok:On that resources page, if you go to the VHA Intranet home page, you will see at the lower right-hand navigation column something called Publications, VHA Publications, and that is what this link shows here on this slide. You go to the VHA Publications link and then there is a search engine there and you type in, in this instance you could look for 1058.05 Handbook, 1058.05 and that would show you the full handbook for this. If you want the chart, you can just go to this ORO web page PDF, to find the chart.

Moderator:Great. How do we know where to request data from AITC or CDW?

Linda Kok:I think we covered that pretty thoroughly, that might have been an early question. I pulled up the DART data sources selection thing. If you are asking, if you need any of the data on this page, the CDW data or the SAS, the CDW data in SQL or the SAS data from corporate data or mainframe with real SSNs, or these other data, then you will go to DART. It is a single place you can go for all of those data sources. Almost all the data, except for PCS, PBM and the VA/CMS data are requested through this, through DART. So, I think that going to that DART access request process page here that we saw will give you a clear idea, and there will be a list on the bottom of this page. It did not all fit on our screen, of all of the datasets that you can, well, actually, it is, you know, all of these datasets that you can access, request access for through DART.

Moderator:Great. And, since we are on this page, there is another question related to it. Just to be clear, we can request data as SAS files without the need for SQL coder. I am a WAK [PH] investigator familiar with SAS, but not proficient with SQL.

Linda Kok:I am assuming they mean on the Corporate Data Warehouse, the, yes, you ask for extracts from these, they are copies of the mainframe files that they keep on Corporate Data Warehouse for convenience of users. And, you can ask or request for access to any of these data in SAS, and the VINCI data manager, who fulfills your request will give you an extract of those data for your cohort in SAS. You can also ask for SAS datasets access from the mainframe. Here, these are for real SSN access, but as we discussed earlier in the CUPS POC request process, you can get the same files with scrambled access for BIRLS and MedSAS. Vital Status is a special exception. That is always requested through DART.

Moderator:Thank you. Is the 9957 form required for PIs or other personnel that will not extract data, but will have access to it for the DART extracts?

Linda Kok:In DART, yes. The 9957 is required for the PI and it is important to note on the form that the person does not need an account set up for them, a TSO account. They should indicate here that, on the form, that this is someone who does not need access, and I think you can do, you can probably make a note of that at the top of the form, that you do not need access to, directly to the AITC system.

Moderator:Great. Regarding slide 29, when will the other datasets be available if only NPPD is available now.

Linda Kok:All of the data, I am sorry, that is, I should have been more clear. NPPD is the only one that, where there is a link from the VHA Data Portal to the PCS data request process. All of these datasets are currently available in custom analytic datasets for research use, and have been for many years. And, the way that you request them is exactly like the request for NPPD. You fill out, you go to that info share site for PCS and complete a Data Transfer Agreement, give a brief description of the study, list the variables and do their Data Security Checklist, and you submit all those forms to PCS. If you have questions, you go to Julie Strickland for them. But, all of these data are available to researchers right now from PCS through the same process as NPPD. It is just, those are the, none of the others are on the portal yet.

Erica;Okay. What if our medical center uses a different HIPAA waiver?

Linda Kok:I cannot answer that question. I was just highlighting the fact that this new template is there. You can check with ORD or, you know, with your IRB office, the research office to see, your R&D research service at your facility should be able to tell you if that is okay.

Moderator:Great. So, to insure that I am understanding the VINCI resources, SAS is available for us to use on projects. We can get it delivered/downloaded to our local network. Is that correct?

Linda Kok:Yes. Well, it is, I sort of misspoke there. They put it in a place for you to go up and download it. They will put it into a workspace, a shared file, and then you can access that. They will grant you access to that spot and then you can download your data. You are not downloading data from VINCI, you are downloading data that has been put in a special place for you to download to your local network server. I am not sure if I clarified that. If the person would like to type in a follow-up question, please do.

Moderator:Yes, please do. Two questions from this attendee. What are the regulations regarding working in VINCI workspace versus working locally? And, number two, you mentioned something about not needing SSN for CDW data. Can you repeat and expand on that detail?

Linda Kok:Okay. Give me the first part and then give me the second part.

Moderator:Sure. The first one is what are the regulations regarding working in VINCI workspace versus working locally?

Linda Kok:Okay. The VINCI workspace is more secured than the, your local VA network servers. VINCI data, once it is in a VINCI workspace is supposed to stay in the VINCI workspace. That is why they provided all of these tools, and it includes, you know, Microsoft PowerPoint and Excel and Word. You could do your whole research protocol and everything up on VINCI. You would not even need a server at your local office at all. You could use this, and you use it through a remote desktop. And, you can get, as you see on this screen there is a place where you can click until you get to the workspace desktop through remote desktop. VINCI data, if you want to download a person level file, right now you need permission from the Director of Health Services Research and Development. This may be changing in the, soon, but it has not changed, it has not been announced or anything yet. But, it will always be, all downloads have to go through an audited transfer server and a close eye is kept on all of the transfers from VINCI through that audited data transfer server. So, the point is to, once data is up on VINCI it should stay up on VINCI unless you have gotten permission to remove it from VINCI. It was always be a notification or permission involved in that. And, that is to protect the data that we store on VINCI. It is a place where we do not have to worry about data getting moved and disappearing. The second part of the question.

Moderator:Yes, the second part was you mentioned something about not needing SSN for CDW data. Can you repeat and expand on that detail?

Linda Kok:Sure. Here, when you are in a DART data sources selection list, you can check the real SSN or scrambled SSN. If you are getting data from CDW, you can check data containing PHI, Protected Health Information, but no real or scrambled SSNs. And, so when get an extract of data from CDW, all of that data is connected internally through CDW identifiers that are not based on, directly on Social Security numbers. So, the data still have the PHI like date of birth and date of death, and the dates of service and the locations and all of that. But, they do not include an identifier that is directly derived from the SSN, and, but the identifiers gives you a way in your own data to link all the data for a single individual across all tables. So, I am hoping I am answering that clearly enough. Thank you. Sorry.

Moderator:Here is another question. How would I request National VA lists of social workers?

Linda Kok:I do not know, and I think it would involve going to the CDW. There is a special table or domain called SStaff, and you would make a special request, well you could probably request it in the CDW production domain, actually. It is probably in here. I imagine you would want to explain exactly how that data are required in your study. But, you would click on this box, the CDW production domain and then it asks for a production domain checklist. There is a higher level of security on that staff table, on that staff domain. So, but you can request it here through DART on the CDW production domain.

Moderator:Great. Thank you. If you have filled out a 9957 for CDW access for operations in the past, but are now requesting access for a research project, do you fill out another 9957 and if so, do you request it as a request new customer or a modify existing customer?

Linda Kok:I would suggest submitting a 9957 again and a modify existing customer would be the short answer.

Moderator:Okay. My ISO said it was a conflict of interest for her to sign the 9957. When I act fishy about this, I was told the 9957 would be phased out, but I still needed and ISO signature. Any guidance on how to proceed?

Linda Kok:Yes. This has happened, I guess, more than once. Make sure that in the, on the 9957 form that you include the name and the title of your CUPS Point of Contact, or ISO here at the bottom, at the very last line of the form, and then note also beneath that, that the ISO or CUPS POC has refused to sign. And, that was the instruction that we were given to share with people if this situation arose. Just include the note after the full name and title of the CUPS POC or ISO and say that ISO or CUPS POC refused to sign this form. And, then submit that with your request.

Moderator:Great. Make sure we have time for attendees to fill out the evaluation. Let us take just one more question. Is source of data on VINCI required for certain types of data? A recent project was delayed due to the learning curve for the analyst to learned VINCI when all prior analysis had been done on a local, regional server.

Linda Kok:There is not national rule about using VINCI for a specific project. But, there are data steward requirements that can be in place, and the data stewards are given a lot of leeway to protect their data in a way that they see fit above and beyond the rules that apply generally. So, I do not know of any national requirements for specific kinds of datasets, but there may be those requirements for specific, from specific data stewards.

Moderator:Great. If there are any other questions that did not get answered, please contact the VIReC Help Desk at VIReC@va.gov. Our next session is scheduled for Monday, December 2, from 1:00 to 2:00 p.m. Eastern, and is entitled, “Assessing Inpatient and Outpatient VA Health for Use” presented by Denise Hynes. We hope that you can join us. 

Linda Kok:Thank you.

Moderator:And, as we close out the meeting today, you will be prompted with a feedback form. If you could take just a few moments to fill that out, we really do read through all of your feedback. Thank you everyone for joining us for today’s HSR&D Cyber Seminar.

Linda Kok:And, I have left up my slide with my contact information in case people have any questions.

Moderator:Great. Thank you, Linda.

[End of audio]

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