Data management has served as a central pillar of the RHSP research and service activities since the program’s inception.
The section is entrusted with planning and ensuring quality data collection, processing raw data and turning it into analyzed or analyzable, generated, relevant and reusable data, and the storage of data during and after research or service activities (archiving).
- Database programming
- The Cohort
- Community Services
- Laboratory Data Management
- SNIH funded studies
It uses Visual FoxPro, SQL and MS Access as the main programming languages ensuring dynamic password protected access to the data processing and management system.
DataFax is used for NIH funded studies. The section ensures quality and efficient management of staff, equipment and database applications by ensuring each study has layers of study management staff, including database administrators, data managers, data entry clerks and filing clerks, all with clearly defined roles.
In total, as of January 2016, the section has 2 Database programmers, 4 Data Management Officers and 10 data entry clerks with some doubling as data filing clerks. All use desktops of laptops running on Windows 7 or 8. Electronic copies of databases are stored on servers, both in Kalisizo and in Entebbe.
The section in collaboration with NIH has constructed a DataMart database that contains longitudinal data of 16 completed survey rounds accessed by Uganda and US based Data managers and serving as the primary source of cohort data (survey data and lab results).
The section will continuously update this database with subsequent completed and cleaned survey round data. It is also able to link cohort participants who are in the HIV care program to their clinical data.
Backups and archives of reusable and analyzable datasets are in Entebbe at Uganda Virus Research Institute and also at Johns Hopkins and Columbia Universities in the USA.
