REGULAR CONTENT
Final ID
621
Type
Educational Exhibit-Poster Only
Authors
K Karaoglu1, O Ozkan1
Institutions
1University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI
Purpose
Our goals in this exhibit are: 1) to share our experiences building an Interventional Oncology patient database from scratch 2) to describe the necessary steps and pitfalls to avoid 3) to demonstrate with examples how a smoothly working database will ease the IR research 4) to better show the capabilities of REDCap.
Materials & Methods
Researchers generally use data entry forms such as excel spreadsheets. But once the columns and rows start to expand and number of patients becomes huge, new inputs and analyses based on these spreadsheets carry risks such as incorrect data entries, duplicates, falsely excluded/included patients. As the amount of data is accumulating continuously, there is an increased interest for databases that combines information from different sources (EMR, PACS) for targeted patient populations.
Results
After we have finalized our need of an IR database in the section, we looked for the best tool that would fit our needs. At that point, REDCap seemed a good starting point with its user friendly, research oriented focus. We chose our data parameters based on the baseline and follow up needs of TACE/TARE. For each patient, there is only one record, which associates with its medical record number, which would then prevent duplicates. Our patient data comes from two main sources: EMR (EPIC) and PACS. Especially for tumor related parameters (e.g. size, location), a manual data entry is the only way possible. For some parameters (lab values), it is possible to pull data from EMRs automatically. Most patients have more than one treatment targeting liver, so each procedure has its own arm with as many follow ups as needed. To set the database, a HIPAA secured server is a must. Data import and export is doable and it is also easy to export your desired report into a statistical program
Conclusions
We now have an IR database to track patients having liver directed treatments. REDCap is a feasible and user friendly tool to start for even non-experienced people in the field. Once a database decision has been made, you should define your needs and expectations first. A database will not give you quick answers but it will direct you to a smooth way to reach your goals.
Final ID
621
Type
Educational Exhibit-Poster Only
Authors
K Karaoglu1, O Ozkan1
Institutions
1University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI
Purpose
Our goals in this exhibit are: 1) to share our experiences building an Interventional Oncology patient database from scratch 2) to describe the necessary steps and pitfalls to avoid 3) to demonstrate with examples how a smoothly working database will ease the IR research 4) to better show the capabilities of REDCap.
Materials & Methods
Researchers generally use data entry forms such as excel spreadsheets. But once the columns and rows start to expand and number of patients becomes huge, new inputs and analyses based on these spreadsheets carry risks such as incorrect data entries, duplicates, falsely excluded/included patients. As the amount of data is accumulating continuously, there is an increased interest for databases that combines information from different sources (EMR, PACS) for targeted patient populations.
Results
After we have finalized our need of an IR database in the section, we looked for the best tool that would fit our needs. At that point, REDCap seemed a good starting point with its user friendly, research oriented focus. We chose our data parameters based on the baseline and follow up needs of TACE/TARE. For each patient, there is only one record, which associates with its medical record number, which would then prevent duplicates. Our patient data comes from two main sources: EMR (EPIC) and PACS. Especially for tumor related parameters (e.g. size, location), a manual data entry is the only way possible. For some parameters (lab values), it is possible to pull data from EMRs automatically. Most patients have more than one treatment targeting liver, so each procedure has its own arm with as many follow ups as needed. To set the database, a HIPAA secured server is a must. Data import and export is doable and it is also easy to export your desired report into a statistical program
Conclusions
We now have an IR database to track patients having liver directed treatments. REDCap is a feasible and user friendly tool to start for even non-experienced people in the field. Once a database decision has been made, you should define your needs and expectations first. A database will not give you quick answers but it will direct you to a smooth way to reach your goals.