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One Mind to co-host DAQCORD Consensus Conference with the NIH on September 18th and 19th

On September 18th and 19th of this year, One Mind and the National Institutes of Health / National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke will host a consensus conference at the NIH Neuroscience Center in Bethesda, MA. The goal of the “Data, Acquisition, Quality & Curation for Observational Research Designs (DAQCORD)” conference is to develop a practical self-assessment and reporting method for clinical research studies.

Sharing big, complex data has enormous potential to enhance and accelerate biomedical research and knowledge. However, it also comes with risks. Limited knowledge about how the data was acquired, managed, and curated can lead to incorrect interpretations and distorted findings, and potentially be counterproductive rather than synergistic.

The conference will convene 40 experts in clinical research design, bioinformatics, data management, biomarker and therapy development, and other relevant fields. Steve Wisniewski from the University of Pittsburgh, and Ari Ercole from the University of Cambridge will co-chair the conference, while Donald Marion from the Defense and Veterans Brain Injury Center will be the facilitator.

A modified Delphi process will be used during the conference to reach agreement on the items and structure for the DAQCORD self-assessment and reporting tool that will get created after the conference. A prioritized goal of the conference is to capture key information about data acquisition, quality control measures, and curation in a tool that is linked to the dataset so that potential researcher collaborators can determine if the data meets their needs and expectations. Once built, the DAQCORD reporting tool will add significant value to data by informing users about its strengths and weaknesses.

“We are excited to co-host the DAQCORD Consensus Conference with the National Institutes of Health and the National Institute of Neurological Disorders & Stroke”, says Mona Hicks, Scientific & Technology Director for One Mind. “The attendees of this conference have a wealth of knowledge and experience with biomedical research and data management, and their collaborative efforts to achieve the goals of the conference will go a long way in helping researchers to self-assess and report on the data they use observational clinical studies”.