The OUHSC Clinical Research Data Warehouse contains data from multiple EHR and related data systems in support of clinical research. The CRDW team provides project-specific datasets to researchers based on project specifications (inclusion criteria, date ranges, etc.).
CRDW EHR data sources include:
Reporting Workbench is a tool within Epic allowing users to perform custom, real-time queries on patient data, and patients identified in these queries may be contacted (one at a time) via MyChart. Workbench Reports display basic patient contact information and links directly to charts so they may be quickly reviewed to manage tasks or further review the chart for eligibility and identify exclusion criteria.
SlicerDicer is an intuitive, robust point-and-click method of rapidly identifying patients meeting study criteria. Data can be viewed visually in graphic formats, and patient lists can be viewed directly for chart review and patient contact (if IRB is approved, and use of SlicerDicer/self-service EHR extraction is specified in the IRB application and protocol). Using the SlicerDicer tool in Epic, users may select criteria (e.g., diagnoses, age ranges, lab results, etc.) and perform some basic analyses on the populations selected, such as counts, percentages, demographic breakdowns, etc. These analyses can be viewed in aggregate by any Epic user (cells < 10 are censored). This can support Feasibility evaluation without exposing PHI.
We encourage researchers who plan to use SlicerDicer for research to attend training to obtain proficiency in using the tool. Please email EpicTraining@ouhealth.com to request training. Additionally, we also encourage newer users of SlicerDicer to request an Epic Research Analyst to review your SlicerDicer report to ensure accuracy. For this support, please submit an OU Health IT ticket routed to Epic Research.
OPAs are a decision support tool used to support better patient outcomes, and they can be tailored to a specific audience. When a patient meeting the OPA criteria presents for an encounter, the provider will be presented with a summary of the study and why the patient qualifies. If a provider indicates patient interest, this will send inbox alert to a research coordinator to let them know that the patient is eligible for the study and interested. This is useful for identifying research subjects eligible for a study, and allowing a provider who already has a relationship with the patient to make the initial contact and request permission for a member of the study team to contact them about the study.
Users should submit a ServiceNow request routed to Epic Research. An Epic Research Analyst will contact you to discuss study requirements. Once the OPA is activated, providers/research coordinators will automatically be notified of eligible patients, and authorized individuals will be able to access reports of OPAs, similarly to Workbench Reports.
Data from 2023-06-02 onward are entered in Epic for OU Health services. Some parts of legacy EHR systems, including encounters from the 3 years prior to Epic Go-Live are available to view within the patient chart. Other legacy EHR data are still available where needed (i.e., for research chart abstraction) are available.
athenaFlow/Centricity and CribNotes OU Health EHR data have been migrated to the LK Oasis (ELLKAY data lake). These data are accessible within Epic by clicking 'Historical Data' on the top right (next to 'Need Help'). All data from patient records are accessible using legacy patient MRNs or patient name and DOB combinations.
Meditech and other legacy sources are still available to access directly as Read Only. If you need access, or if you need to restore access, please submit a ServiceNow request to OU Health for access to these systems.
If you need a data extract pulled (a custom dataset, as opposed to access for manual chart review), you may benefit from working with the Clinical Research Data Warehouse team.
The REDCap on FHIR interface connects Epic to REDCap and allows for transfer of EHR data to REDCap records in a convenient structured format.
Use of REDCap on FHIR must be clearly documented in the project's IRB protocol, and a complete list of requested fields should be uploaded to application attachments. Further rules and best practices for use of REDCap on FHIR are pending approval.
For more details, please visit our REDCap on FHIR knowledge base article.
Coming soon to OUHSC...
Chart Abstraction Made Easy
EMERSE (Electronic Medical Record Search Engine) is software that helps researchers accurately find and extract important patient details like diagnoses, medications, procedures, and complications from clinical notes. EMERSE is easy for non-technical people to use and enables health research that was previously inefficient or nearly impossible. The functionality enables users to quickly and easily search notes in Epic (similar to a Google search) and retrieve data (terms are highlighted within the notes for rapid concept identification) that are not otherwise available in structured fields, such as ICD codes and lab values. EMERSE has the potential to save study personnel hours on chart review for data collection.
EMERSE cohorts can be created in Epic and exported to REDCap via the REDCap on FHIR interface.
EMERSE use cases:
For more details about EMERSE, please visit https://project-emerse.org/
For the EMERSE user guide, please visit https://project-emerse.org/documentation/user_guide.html
Cosmos (https://cosmos.epic.com/) is a harmonized, groomed dataset including longitudinal records from over 1400 hospitals and 32.5K clinics with over 11 billion encounters for 242 million distinct patients including lab results, procedures, hospital visits, vitals, demographics, social determinants of health, and much more. Cosmos is accessible to all researchers affiliated with a Cosmos participating organization. Users who take a short series of courses are able to use the Epic SlicerDicer tool to identify and evaluate patterns, trends, counts, and various cross-sectionality views of existing data for all institutions that contribute data to Cosmos. Cosmos is used to answer research questions and to learn more about institutional quality control. Obtaining access to a new project in Cosmos is fast, and answers can be obtained on-demand. Cosmos has an elected governance board, and all users must agree to the Cosmos Rules of the Road to uphold the standards of use.
Researchers interested in obtaining access to Cosmos should contact bbmc@ouhsc.edu
Read more about N3C
Researchers interested in accessing N3C should reach out to bbmc@ouhsc.edu.
The National Institutes of Health’s All of Us Research Program hosts a one-of-a-kind dataset stored on the Researcher Workbench, a secure, cloud-based platform. Registered researchers can access data from surveys, genomic analyses, electronic health records, physical measurements, and wearables to study the full range of factors that influence health and disease.
To get started with All of Us, first register at https://www.researchallofus.org/register/. You will be required to verify your identity, complete mandatory training, and sign a data user code of conduct.
If you need assistance navigating All of Us, please reach out to bbmc@ouhsc.edu.
REDCap is a browser-based, metadata-driven electronic data capture software created by Vanderbilt University. The REDCap Consortium is composed of nearly 900 active institutional partners from more than 70 countries. Programming, networking or database experience is not needed to use REDCap. It is designed to use simple interfaces that handle these details automatically. REDCap is secure and web-based: you can input data or build an online survey or database from anywhere in the world over a secure web connection with authentication and data logging. REDCap allows multi-site access for research that uses multiples sites and institutions.
Read more about REDCap
REDCap Admin Thomas Wilson hosts weekly office hours where you can attend to ask REDCap questions and problem solve technical issues. To sign up for REDCap Office Hours, please email Thomas-Wilson@ouhsc.edu
The Online Collaborative Research Environment (OnCore) is a comprehensive web-based clinical trial management system (CTMS). OnCore offers investigators and research coordinators a centralized application to manage the complete life cycle of a study, from start-up and pre-award activities to closure. Key features of OnCore include protocol management, subject management, financial management, biospecimen management, patient registries, safety monitoring, and reporting.
Read more about OnCore
Advarra's eRegulatory Management System (eREG) is a 21 CFR Part 11 compliant system designed to adapt to and streamline research site regulatory workflows. Features available for use in eREG include routing an signing documents, delegation of authority, applying shared documents across multiple protcols, securely allowing access to sponsors and monitors, managing multi-site trials, and effectively acting as the research binder for study protocols. eREG is able to link with OnCore for protocol management.
eREG is used campuswide for oncology research, and implementation is underway for non-oncology studies. Non-oncology study teams interested in learning more about using eReg for regulatory management, email CTMS-Support@ouhsc.edu, and we will work with you to assess your team's needs and facilitate system access.
The Clinical Research Informatics Oversight Committee (CRIOC) reviews requests for using patient health data for research and/or sharing patient health data with any external entity for research purposes. CRIOC is comprised of legal, compliance, privacy, security, and research officials from the OU Health and Health Sciences Center (HSC) administration. CRIOC weighs institutional liabilities and any risk to data impacted by the usage and exchanges of these data.
Read more about CRIOC
Click here for instructions on requesting a site visit and/or requesting EHR access...