Abstract
The challenges of reliably collecting, storing, organizing, and analyzing research data are critical in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), particularly in Sub-Saharan Africa where several healthcare and biomedical research organizations have limited data infrastructure. The Research Electronic Data Capture (REDCap) System has been widely used by many institutions and hospitals in the USA for data collection, entry, and management and could help solve this problem. This study reports on the experiences, challenges, and lessons learned from establishing and applying REDCap for a large US-Nigeria research partnership that includes two sites in Nigeria, (the College of Medicine of the University of Lagos (CMUL) and Jos University Teaching Hospital (JUTH)) and Northwestern University (NU) in Chicago, Illinois in the United States. The largest challenges to this implementation were significant technical obstacles: the lack of REDCap-trained personnel, transient electrical power supply, and slow/ intermittent internet connectivity. However, asynchronous communication and on-site hands-on collaboration between the Nigerian sites and NU led to the successful installation and configuration of REDCap to meet the needs of the Nigerian sites. An example of one lesson learned is the use of Virtual Private Network (VPN) as a solution to poor internet connectivity at one of the sites, and its adoption is underway at the other. Virtual Private Servers (VPS) or shared online hosting were also evaluated and offer alternative solutions. Installing and using REDCap in LMIC institutions for research data management is feasible; however, planning for trained personnel and addressing electrical and internet infrastructural requirements are essential to optimize its use. Building this fundamental research capacity within LMICs across Africa could substantially enhance the potential for more cross-institutional and cross-country collaboration in future research endeavors.
Highlights
While health research has increased substantially over the past decade, in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) and Africa, it is still limited [1]
Research Electronic Data Capture (REDCap) allows researchers to choose and define their data elements, which allows it to be used for a variety of research projects including those within 21 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Part 11, Federal Information Security Management Act (FISMA), and the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA)-compliant environments [5]
Challenges, and lessons learned from installing and using REDCap, a system that is free to use and does not require a dedicated IT team, in Nigeria
Summary
While health research has increased substantially over the past decade, in LMICs and Africa, it is still limited [1]. REDCap is a secure, web-based application for building and managing online surveys and databases. It was developed in the United States at Vanderbilt University in 2004. Health and Technology for academic and non-profit use in health research, quality assurance, and health service management [5] The original application was designed to support a small group of clinical researchers who needed a secure data collection tool that met Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) compliance standards. REDCap allows researchers to choose and define their data elements, which allows it to be used for a variety of research projects including those within 21 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Part 11, Federal Information Security Management Act (FISMA), and the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA)-compliant environments [5]. 6.6% of active REDCap users are in Africa. [5] This study reports on the experiences, challenges, and lessons learned from installing and using the REDCap system for research data collection at three collaborating sites, to help institutions in LMICs ( in Africa) install and use REDCap and enhance their potential for inter-institutional and international collaboration in future research endeavors
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