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REDCap – Recommended tools for Data Management in Research Projects

Events, research methods, Research news, research staff, Research Training, Training, Uncategorized

Recommended tools for Data Management in Research Projects

4 December 2024, 09:00 -13:00 Book here

Learn about data collection and management best practices in research and why REDCap is better that MS Excel or Qualtrics for almost every type of data collection, either through online surveys or direct entry into a database.

Our REDCap expert (Will Crocombe) will show you why this tool has been used in 2.2 million research projects worldwide to date, and with no prior knowledge, you will learn to use REDCap and be ready to use it in your next investigation at the end of this course.

Attendees on the basic course will learn:

What is REDCap and why is it important?

  • What can REDCap do and who uses it. Data management expectations, data integrity and quality, safety and security.

Data collection forms and data entry – the basics

  • Understand basics of field types and form design, build a simple study and add some data. Review form status and dashboard.

Improving usability

  • Data range checks, action tags, field skipping, option lists, calculated fields.
  • Use of Data Quality Rules, inbuilt and custom, calculations.

Data import and export

  • Data export options and format. Import features and use as data editor.
  • Data Dictionary and metadata.

So why use REDCap?

REDCap (Research Electronic Data Capture) is a secure, web-based software platform designed for building and managing online surveys and databases. Originally developed at Vanderbilt University, it has become widely used all over the world in academic, non-profit, and government institutions, particularly for research and clinical data management.

REDCap is considered better than Microsoft Excel for data collection and management because it is more secure, offers better data quality, and is easier to use.

Qualtrics and REDCap are both easy to use, but REDCap is more customisable and supports data entry workflows, including multiple user roles and permissions, which are particularly useful in collaborative research teams. Additionally, REDCap supports audit trails for data entries and changes, critical for research reproducibility. Qualtrics can be expensive, especially to access advanced features, while all features in REDCap are free.

For further information on this event please contact RKEDF@bournemouth.ac.uk

Book here

REDCap Key Features:

  1. Data Collection: REDCap allows users to easily create and manage data collection forms, which can be used for various purposes like surveys, longitudinal studies, or clinical trials.
  2. User-Friendly Interface: It provides an intuitive, web-based interface for project setup and data entry, allowing non-technical users to create complex projects without needing programming skills.
    1. Easy to Design Forms: REDCap provides a user-friendly interface for creating and designing online surveys and databases without needing advanced programming skills.
    2. Drag-and-Drop Interface: Allows for easy form building and question arrangement.
  3. Secure and Compliant: REDCap supports HIPAA compliance and other data security standards as GDPR and FISMA, making it suitable for handling sensitive or protected health information (PHI).
  4. Customisability: Users can customize forms, surveys, and workflows to suit their project needs, and it supports branching logic, validation, and automated alerts.
    1. Flexible Form Design: You can create complex branching logic, calculated fields, and use piping to personalize questions.
    2. Autonomy for Researchers: Users can independently design and manage their projects without needing IT support.
  5. Collaboration: It enables collaboration across institutions, allowing multiple users with different permission levels to work on the same project.
  6. Longitudinal Data Collection: It supports collecting data over time from the same participants, which is important for research projects that involve repeated measurements.
  7. Shared Library: REDCap’s Shared Library allows users to browse and search for data entry forms that other users have uploaded.
  8. Data Export: Data collected in REDCap can be exported to various statistical software formats (e.g., SPSS, SAS, Stata, R) for analysis

Research Skills Toolkit – On demand online modules

BU research, Doctoral College, ECR Network, Research Concordat, Research Ethics, research staff, Research Training

We are pleased to inform you that there have been some updates to our Epigeum Research Skills Toolkit modules.

  • Becoming a Researcher: Comprising of three courses (Working With Your Supervisors, Effective Management of Doctoral and Master’s Research and IP in the Research Context), the programme was recently given a content refresh.
  • Disseminating Your Research and Beyond Research are in line for updates in 2025 – watch this space for further information in due course!

Online modules within this Research Skills Toolkit include the following:

  • Becoming a Researcher: Effective management of Doctoral and Master’s research, Intellectual property in the research context, Working with your supervisors.
  • Research Methods: Undertaking a literature review, Principles of research methods, Research methods in practice: Arts and humanities, Research methods in practice: Social sciences, Research methods in practice: STEM.
  • Ethical Research: Becoming an ethical researcher, Research ethics in practice
  • Disseminating your Research: Communicating your Research with Impact, Getting Published.
  • Beyond Research: Innovation and entrepreneurship, Career planning.

See brochure

All modules as part of the Research Skills Toolkit are available to ALL STAFF using your @bournemouth.ac.uk email address.

You will need to follow these steps to set up an account:

  1. Go to: https://courses.epigeum.com/register.
    Use token 678a512f when completing the form.
  2. An activation link will be sent to your e-mail. Please also check your JUNK mail.
  3. Once registration is complete, log in with this different link: https://courses.epigeum.com/login.

Adding the Research Ethics Modules:

  1. Once you have set up your account and logged in, click the person icon in the top right-hand corner of the screen.
  2. Select ‘Enter Token’.
    Use token 02d34ae8.

If you already have an account:

If you already have an account set up, you will then need to follow these steps.

  1. Log into your account: https://courses.epigeum.com/login.
  2. Click the person icon in the top right-hand corner of the screen.
  3. Depending on what you are missing either add token 678a512f (for the wider Research Skills Toolkit modules) or 02d34ae8 (for the Research Ethics Modules).

Viewing your modules:

To start viewing and working through your chosen modules, click back on the person icon, and select Full Catalogue.

If you have any questions please do not hesitate to get in touch:

Enrica Conrotto – pgrskillsdevelopment@bournemouth.ac.uk

Sarah Bell (Ethics modules) – researchethics@bournemouth.ac.uk

 

October Development opportunities – sign up now!

ECR Network, research staff, Research Training, RKE development framework, Training

Book now for RKEDF development in October 2024! 

 Click on the titles to find further details and book your place!!!! 

ECRN – Introduction/New to BU 

Wednesday Oct 1st, 14:00 – 15:00 – Fusion Building, Talbot Campus 

Everything you wanted to know about being an ECR (but were afraid to ask).  It is open to all who identify as being in the early stages of their research career – whether a Postgraduate Researcher, newly-appointed academic, or returning to research. 

RDS Researcher & Academic Induction 

Wednesday, Oct 18th, 10:00 – 11:00 – online, MS Teams  

An overview of all the practical information staff need to begin developing their research plans at BU and support available through RDS 

 ECRN:  Academic Publishing                                                               

Wednesday, Oct 30th, 13:00 – 14:00 – Fusion Building, Talbot Campus   

This session is aimed at ECRs & PGRs who are new to or who have experience of academic publishing and wish to find out more. 

 ——————————————————————————————  

Please help us in avoiding any waste of resources; make sure you can attend or cancel your booking prior to the session. 

For any further information, please contact RKEDF@bournemouth.ac.uk   

DNS staff share their virtual reality research at AHSN Wessex

BU research, innovation, Research Centres, Research news, research staff

on behalf of Professor Debbie Holley

I am delighted to report that Dr Michele Board, Dr Heidi Singleton and I were invited to share our virtual reality research as part of the Wessex Academic Health Science Network webinar on 16.03.2023. Dr Board presented her work on ‘walk through dementia’, which brings the reality of lived experiences places the viewer in the shoes of the person with dementia. More information about this projects and the collaboration with the Alzheimer’s Society are available from the ADRC website.

Dr Singleton and I presented on our work on the mental health 360 video scenarios we created for student nurse education which have been embedded within the curriculum.

Evaluated via Focus group discussions (n=6 students) and an online survey (n=33 thus far); with 94% of nursing students reporting that the videos were extremely or very useful for their learning.  

“It flags up potential extra considerations in practice that you wouldn’t anticipate with just the theoretical teaching. You can better visualise.” (Student Nurse 31) 

“It made me feel confident in how to interact with an individual who may be having a mental health breakdown.” (Student Nurse 15) 

“It showed me that you can take time and check the correct information and repeat steps when assessing and treating a patient.” (Student Nurse 8) 

The learning resources mean that students can link theory to practice and can repeat the activity at any point during their course and from any location.

Thanks to the wider team Ursula Rolfe, John Moran, Emma Collins and our former colleague Jasmine Snowden,

 

Build your research capacity with an EquaDem research internship

Research news, research staff

Are you a Health and Social Care Professional, or work with a Third Sector or Local Authority organization? If you’re looking to enhance your research skills while making a meaningful impact on health and social care, the EquaDem Research Internship might be the perfect opportunity for you. These internships allow release from usual workplace duties—up to one day a week for a maximum of 12 months—to carry our a supervised research project.

Internships must adhere to the following key principles:
1. involve co-production with people with lived experience/ service users.
2. focus on providing solutions to inequalities
3. Applicants should refer to the Focus On Research and Equity (FOR EQUITY) web-based platform when considering the health inequality aspects of their applications.
Throughout the internship, you’ll be supervised by two core members of the EquaDem network. You’ll also gain access to online training modules and other resources to support your research journey. In addition, you’ll be expected to:
  • Attend EquaDem workshops and events.
  • Contribute to the dissemination of your research (e.g., through blogs or web pages).
  • Present your findings at the annual EquaDem Conference.
For all types of internships, salary back-fill will be provided to the intern’s employing organisation to assist with time release. This will involve up to £5000 salary backfill (of which 80% is covered by this fund and 20% to be contributed by the intern host organisation) and up to £500 for research-related costs (such as public involvement, transcription, co-production) (of which 80% is covered by this fund and 20% to be contributed by the intern host organisation).
Calls for the EquaDem Research Internship are annual, and the next application deadline is 18th November 2024, 5pm. If you’re interested, here’s how to apply:
Request an application form by emailing the team at Equademnetworkplus@liverpool.ac.uk. You can also use this email if you’d like to discuss the internships or other potential opportunities.
Submit your application in PDF format by the deadline.
https://www.dementiaresearcher.nihr.ac.uk/job/equadem-research-internship/

The King’s Fund roundtable blog

Research news, research staff

Pooja Shah, a postdoctoral researcher working on the Tangerine project (aiming to develop a novel intervention to improve nutrition and promote healthy ageing among older people from South Asian and Afro Caribbean communities in the UK) attended a roundtable discussion at the King’s Fund to explore what a greater focus on nutrition could mean for the health care system and those at risk of malnutrition. Discussion focused on the causes, prevalence, diagnosis and response to malnutrition. This included how we can engage those working across the health and care system at a national and local level – including primary care, social care, and those with clinical expertise – with improving the early diagnosis of malnutrition through patient screening, greater awareness, and the use of tools for better population health management. In the context of an ageing population, the roundtable also provided an opportunity to discuss the role of improved nutrition and targeted interventions in enabling people to remain independent for as long as possible.

The Kings Fund are delighted to share their recent blog, based on the roundtable discussion.

Wednesday 2 October – Have your say at the LGBTQ+ Digital Lives workshop

BU research, ESRC, Events, Research Centres, Research news, research staff

This year the national ESRC Festival of Social Sciences theme is ‘Our Digital Lives’. For the festival, BU is supporting events that will run between Saturday October 19th and Saturday November 9th. Jayne Caudwell and Frankie Gaunt in the Department of Social Sciences and Social Work were awarded up to £1,000 to hold an event in the festival.  Their event is an art exhibition focused on “Communities of Positive Well-Being: The Digital Lives of LGBTQ+ Young People”. 
The aim of the event is to showcase on-line spaces that help LGBTQ+ young people feel safe, happy and that they belong. This is important because existing research shows that physical space can be a hostile public place for LGBTQ+ people. This hostility can lead to feelings of marginalisation, exclusion and isolation.
Before the art exhibition, a series of workshops will take place with local LGBTQ+ young people to explore how social media and the internet provide opportunity for positive stories at a time when mainstream media can be negative in its coverage of LGBTQ+ issues. The workshops are funded by the Centre for Seldom Heard Voices, the next workshop is Wednesday 2 October 4-6pm in BG 601, Bournemouth Gateway Building. During the workshop participants will decide the artwork that will be used for the art exhibition. The art exhibition will be displayed in and around Bournemouth and Dorset.
Check out the CSHV twitter @BU_SeldomHeard to share information about the upcoming workshops or visit http://www.bournemouth.ac.uk/lgbtq-digital-lives

RDS Academic & Researcher Induction

BU research, Impact, Knowledge Exchange, Post-award, pre-award, R & KE Operations, Research Ethics, research staff, RKE development framework, Training

RDS Academic & Researcher Induction – Weds 16th October 10:00 – 11:00, online

The primary aim of this event is to raise participants’ awareness of how to get started in research at BU or, for more established staff, how to take their research to the next level.  It will provide participants with essential, practical information and orientation in key stages and processes of research and knowledge exchange at BU

You’ll be made aware of the support available at each stage of the research lifecycle and get an introduction to the Research, Development & Support Team, who are here to help! It will be hosted by our experts who are responsible for strategy, outputs, ethics, public engagement, knowledge exchange, project management & training.  It will include:

  • A brief overview of research excellence at BU and how RDS can help/support academic staff
  • How we can support your impact, public engagement, knowledge exchange & output activity and why it’s important – essential to quality bids and the REF
  • How to find funding opportunities and access support for the application process
  • How to manage an awarded RKE projects, incl aspects on intellectual property & commercialisation
  • Key points on research ethics and governance
  • Where to find what training is available, incl other BU support and internal networks

Come along, join in, get some important insights – hopefully see you there!  Book your place HERE

If you are new to academia, it may be helpful for you to meet with your faculty mentor to guide your familiarisation of research at BU and expectations of an early career researcher before attending this induction. You can also join the Early Career researcher (ECR) Network.

For some background and more immediate information on RDS, please head to the RKE SharePoint

For further information on this event or joining the ECRN, please contact RKEDF@bournemouth.ac.uk

ESRC South West Doctoral Training Partnership

BU research, Doctoral College, ECR Network, ESRC, PG research, Postgraduate Research, research staff, Research Supervision, Research Training

In November last year, it was officially announced that Bournemouth University was part of the successful South West Doctoral Training Partnership (SWDTP) re-bid to the ESRC. Being part of the SWDTP provides prestigious opportunities to compete for PhD Studentships and Post-Doctoral Fellowships. There are also a number of other benefits including funding available to staff at institutions affiliated with the SWDTP and being part of a wider community of postgraduate students.

The SWDTP is made up of the Universities of Bristol, Bath, Bath Spa, Bournemouth, Exeter, Plymouth, Plymouth Marjons and UWE. The SWDTP ‘Hub’ (based at the University of Bristol) manages an annual competitive process, on behalf of the ESRC, to award up to 34 PhD studentships and 4 Post-Doctoral Fellowships. Bournemouth were invited to join the re-bid in pathways that aligned to the ESRC remit and which scored above an ESRC set threshold in the REF 2021 exercise. Aligned to UoAs 4 (Psychology), 14 (Geography & Environmental Studies), and 24 (Sport & Exercise Sciences, Leisure & Tourism), BU are eligible to apply for studentships across three of the 17 SWDTP pathways: Psychology; Climate Change, Sustainability & Society; and, Health, Well-being & Society.

Despite an exceptionally short window in November last year, we were able to run a limited and streamlined process that enabled us to compete for a limited number of studentships. We are delighted that we will have 2 new ESRC funded studentships begin in September of this year. We are now in the process of developing our first full PhD application round for students who would start in September 2025. The Post-Doctoral Fellow competition is likely to take place in March next year. With 8 institutions aligned to 17 pathways and 34 studentships available annually, these studentships are, understandably, extremely competitive. As such, we are looking to support prospective postgraduate students in the development of competitive applications.

Whilst much of our messaging is oriented toward attracting potential students and developing competitive applications, we are keen to ensure all BU staff who align to the three pathways are aware of these potential opportunities. Indeed, two of the pathways in which we are eligible to apply are interdisciplinary pathways (Climate Change, Sustainability & Society; Health, Well-being & Society). This means that applications may well be strengthened through projects that draw on a number of disciplinary approaches, provided there remains alignment to the UoAs highlighted above and satisfy the ESRC criteria for Social Science.

At this stage, and in the first instance, we just wanted to make colleagues aware of these potential opportunities and outline a few ways you may want to get involved / be visible for future candidates. We would be happy to add colleagues aligned to these pathways to our own internal webpages (see links below) and to email distribution groups. If you would like to be added, please do message the relevant pathway leads (listed below). Also, if you are aware of potential students who may be interested in applying please do feel free to get in touch with the relevant pathway lead. Further, you are able to add your own details to the SWDTP prospective supervisor database in any of the three pathways which BU are currently involved. You are able to add yourself to this database here (deadline is 26th September).

Finally, we will be running a couple of ‘lunchbite’ sessions via the Doctoral College in September / October oriented toward academic colleagues (we will run prospective student sessions in due course). These are designed to provide a little more information about the SWDTP, the pathways to which we belong, the timelines for 2025 cohort applications, and aid supervisors with supporting potential applicants. Please do look out for more information coming soon about these sessions.

BU SWDTP Pathways

RKEDF: Early Career Researcher Network – Introduction/New to BU

BU research, ECR Network, research staff, Research Training, RKE development framework, Training

RKEDF: Early Career Researcher Network – Introduction/New to BU

Weds 2nd Oct 14:00-15:00, Talbot Campus

 

This session is facilitated by BU Professors and ECRN conveners.  It is an open introduction to working, researching and thriving at BU where you will learn about key contacts and services, how to manage the expectations of your role, and share advice on developing your skills as an early career researcher.

It is open to all who identify as being in the early stages of their research career – whether a Postgraduate Researcher, newly-appointed academic, or returning to research.

Book your place here

If you are not already a member of the Early Career Researcher Network (ECRN) but would like to be, or if you have any questions, please contact: RKEDF@bournemouth.ac.uk.

 

An interdisciplinary approach to thinking about pain

Research Centres, Research news, research staff

Congratulations to Professor Carol Clark, Dr Sujan Marahatta and Professor Vanora Hundley for their new interdisciplinary paper exploring the prevalence of pain catastrophising among women of reproductive age in Nepal.

It is well-acknowledged that there are multiple factors that contribute to constructing perceptions of pain – this paper explores previous pain experiences and the prevalence of pain catastrophising. The team found a high prevalence of pain catastrophising in Nepal, which could contribute rising obstetric intervention, particularly caesarean births, in Nepal.

The work is part of a programme of work looking at how best to support women during the latent phase of labour (early labour). You can hear more about this work by listening to a recent vodcast from Carol and Vanora:

Pain in Childbirth: An Interdisciplinary Approach – By: Prof. Vanora Hundley and Prof. Carol Clark (youtube.com)

Nutrition team head to Belfast for the International Nutrition Society Congress

BU research, conferences, research staff

Between the 2nd- 4th July, staff from the Nutrition team in the Department of Rehabilitation and Sport Sciences travelled to Belfast to present their research and attend the international Nutrition Society Congress.

Staff showcased and presented a wide range of nutrition and health sciences research which was exceptionally well received by the audience members across the three days in Belfast.

  • Dr Joanne Holmes, Deputy Head of Department presented work entitled Sensory appeal and acceptance of a novel food intervention programme for older adults living with dysphagia.
  • Dr Fotini Tsofliou, Principal Academic and Programme Lead MSc Nutrition and Behaviour alongside two postgraduate researchers (PGRs) James Brooks (PhD) and Lee Chester (MRes) presented three research projects (1x randomised cross-over study and 2x systematic reviews) on healthy diet patterns towards a mediterranean style diet and effects on mood and mental wellbeing in middle aged adults.
  • Dr Reena Vijayakumaran, Senior Lecturer presented work entitled Exploring Food Insecurity & Sustainable Food in Rural India: Collaborative Learning through Student Mobility Programme
  • Dr Sarah Hillier, Senior Lecturer and Programme Lead BSc Nutrition presented work entitled Women’s dietary changes before and during pregnancy: a systematic review update. A project working in collaboration with her colleague Dr Ellinor Olander from City University.
  • Prof Jane Murphy, Deputy Dean presented work entitled A co-designed food intervention to promote healthy ageing in ethnic minorities  (TANGERINE | Bournemouth University)

The Nutrition Society Congress gave the team an opportunity to collaborate and network with individuals across higher education, industry, and policy makers in the field of nutrition sciences.

The Congress was also an opportunity for staff members to engage in some team bonding, and they took the opportunity to learn about the history of Belfast, as well as sampling some of the local cuisine and beverages!

 

BA Small Grants call: Online Guidance session

BU research, pre-award, research opportunities, research staff, RKE development framework

British Academy Small Grants will be opening soon

Join us Online

Wednesday 24 July 2024, 10:00-12:00

 

to review the guidance and discuss your proposal for the upcoming BA/Leverhulme Small grants call.

Slides will be available after the session while the timeline schedule for this call can be found here.

 

Join Teams link here

If you have any queries, please contact Eva Papadopoulou epapadopoulou@bournemouth.ac.uk or your Funding Development Officer.