Core B: Data and Research Methods

Rhode Island Hospital, Providence RI

Investigators

Linked publications & trials

Abstract

CORE B-Data and Research Methods The goal of the COBRE on Opioids and Overdose is to support and foster research that addresses the twin epidemics of opioid use disorder and overdose. These unprecedented public health crises necessitate rigorous, well-designed studies to inform interventions and policies that produce sustained public health impact. However, investigators must have access to infrastructure and resources that support these efforts. The objective of the Data and Research Methods (DRM) Core is to provide methodological, analytic, and data-related support and infrastructure for project leaders and other COBRE-affiliated researchers. This array of support encompasses study design expertise, data security, data linkage, and data management resources, as well as biostatistical analytic support and visualization services. Our core also plays a key role in connecting COBRE-affiliated researchers with our state agency partners, supporting access to, linkage with, and analysis of administrative datasets and surveillance data. In Phase II, the DRM Core will continue to provide study design and methodological expertise, data management resources, and analytic support for all projects affiliated with the COBRE Center for Opioids and Overdose. The DRM Core will continue to serve as a centralized resource to address the design, computational, and analytic needs shared by COBRE-affiliated investigators who lack capacity to build the necessary resources within their own research groups. Moreover, during the Phase I project period, we successfully developed robust infrastructure for epidemiological and interventional data to be stored, managed, shared, analyzed in an efficient and secure manner, which will be further expanded and developed as part of Phase II. Finally, DRM Core members will continue to collaborate closely with the Translation and Transformation (T2) Core to generate data visualizations (e.g., interactive maps) and other tools (e.g., plain language summaries) to accelerate public health impact. Our long-term goal is to build a centralized, sustainable resource that provides researchers with the foundation and building blocks necessary to conduct high quality opioid and overdose research. The resources provided by our core will continue to support COBRE investigator career development by enabling researchers to focus on the substantive and clinical challenges of their studies, while at the same time avoiding duplication of methodological and analytic expertise.