REDCap
REDCap is a secure web-based application designed to create data collection tools and manage collected data in a secure database. It is created by Vanderbilt University, USA, and licensed to non-profit organizations worldwide through the REDCap Consortium. Originally, it was designed for use in clinical trials, but REDCap can be used with any type of data, ranging from biological data to those in engineering, social sciences, and physical sciences.
After the establishment of the Center for Informatics at the University of San Agustin (USA-CFI) in 2018, the now USA-CFI director Dr. de Castro and representatives of UPLB (led by Dr. Maria Amelita Estacio) and UP Manila (led by Dr. Salvador Eugene Caoili) founded the REDCap Users Consortium (RUC) in 2019 - with the three institutions and its constituents as founding members. RUC aims to utilize REDCap in digitizing data collection and management and increasing research efficiency and productivity. The tripartite collaboration was started in October 2019 and was formalized in August 2021 through the signing of a Memorandum of Agreement between UPLB – College of Veterinary Medicine, UP Manila - College of Medicine/College of Public Health, and University of San Agustin - Center for Informatics.
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REDCap Users Consortium
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The REDCap Users Consortium had its humble beginnings in 2018, when the University of the Philippines Los Baños College of Veterinary Medicine (UPLB CVM), in cooperation with the University of the Philippines Manila Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology (UPM DBMB), hosted Dr. Romulo de Castro as Balik scientist of the Department of Science and Technology.
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Dr. Romulo “Jong” de Castro had already been awarded several Balik Scientists stints prior to 2018. Previously, he helped develop a biological data repository for the Sampung Halamang Gamot project of the UP Manila DBMB, an app for DOST’s Balik Scientist Program, a free electronic medical record app for independent healthcare providers in urban/rural settings in the Philippines (UnEMR), and a disease surveillance App for UPLB-CVM (Animal Disease Surveillance System), to name a few.
The 2018 Balik Scientist project and collaboration with UPLB-CVM and UPM DBMB entitled “Implementation of REDCap in the collaboration between the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, College of Medicine, UP Manila and College of Veterinary Medicine, UP Los Baños on informatics tools.” had the goal of transforming the crude and unorganized data collection and management practices of researchers in the Philippines into a more organized, structured, and digital database. This was done by establishing a UPLB-licensed instance of the Research Electronic Data Capture (REDCap) - a secure web-based application designed to create data collection tools and manage collected data in a secure database.
During his stay, Dr. de Castro helped license REDCap for the use of UPLB CVM and UPM DBMB, as well as its initial setup. He then established and trained teams in UPLB and UP Manila to manage the operation and maintenance of REDCap. The UPLB and UP Manila REDCap teams then conducted a few workshops on their respective campuses to demonstrate and promote the use of REDCap.
The 2018 Balik Scientist project and collaboration with UPLB-CVM and UPM DBMB entitled “Implementation of REDCap in the collaboration between the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, College of Medicine, UP Manila and College of Veterinary Medicine, UP Los Baños on informatics tools.” had the goal of transforming the crude and unorganized data collection and management practices of researchers in the Philippines into a more organized, structured, and digital database. This was done by establishing a UPLB-licensed instance of the Research Electronic Data Capture (REDCap) - a secure web-based application designed to create data collection tools and manage collected data in a secure database.
During his stay, Dr. de Castro helped license REDCap for the use of UPLB CVM and UPM DBMB, as well as its initial setup. He then established and trained teams in UPLB and UP Manila to manage the operation and maintenance of REDCap. The UPLB and UP Manila REDCap teams then conducted a few workshops on their respective campuses to demonstrate and promote the use of REDCap.
RUC Goals
- To develop informatics infrastructures, databases and tools (e.g. applications) useful for the research conducted by consortium members and their collaborators, and;
- To establish a collaborative network of researchers and capacitate them on gathering and sharing data for better discovery and innovation.
Establishment of the REDCap Users Consortium
After the establishment of the Center for Informatics at the University of San Agustin (USA-CFI) in 2018, the now USA-CFI director Dr. de Castro and representatives of UPLB (led by Dr. Maria Amelita Estacio) and UP Manila (led by Dr. Salvador Eugene Caoili) founded the REDCap Users Consortium (RUC) in 2019 - with the three institutions and its constituents as founding members. RUC aims to utilize REDCap in digitizing data collection and management and increasing research efficiency and productivity. The tripartite collaboration was started in October 2019 and was formalized in August 2021 through the signing of a Memorandum of Agreement between UPLB – College of Veterinary Medicine, UP Manila - College of Medicine/College of Public Health, and University of San Agustin - Center for Informatics.
COVID-19 Pandemic
The onslaught of the COVID-19 pandemic during the early months of 2020 has posed numerous challenges in the public health sector – one of which is handling the deluge of information on COVID-19 cases, testing, and subsequently therapeutics/medication. Despite the massive advances in the field of Information Technology over the past several years, the Philippines still lagged behind developed countries in the management of big data, especially clinical and research data. A considerable portion of clinical and research data was still being recorded and archived manually (with pen and paper) or with generic software – at best using digital spreadsheets like Excel. The adoption of advanced digital tools such as data management apps has been slow, causing considerable problems in data management and analysis, and subsequently, delays in response to emergencies such as the COVID-19 pandemic.
As such, in response to the designation of the Philippine General Hospital (PGH) as one of the then three COVID-19 referral centers in the National Capital Region, several faculty, researchers, and data scientists from the UPLB College of Veterinary Medicine (UPLB-CVM), UP Manila College of Medicine and College of Public Health (UP Manila CM/CPH), and the University of San Agustin Center for Informatics (USA-CFI) jointly volunteered to assist the PGH COVID-19 study group in managing the hospital’s COVID-19 clinical data through REDCap.
Having extensive experience in REDCap, a multidisciplinary data management team, a dedicated training program, and a comprehensive Data Governance policy, the REDCap team (of UPLB-CVM, UPM CM/CPH, and USA-CFI) leveraged their collective expertise and resources to rapidly develop various data collection tools for the PGH COVID-19 study group. The majority of the trainings for REDCap users was provided by the REDCap team members of UP Manila, while actual data collection was managed and performed by the PGH COVID-19 study group (which coincidentally, included REDCap team members from UP Manila). REDCap tools for COVID-19 were collectively developed by all three institutions, while maintenance of the REDCap backend (server and administration) was jointly handled by UPLB-CVM and USA-CFI.
REDCap was initially rolled out to manage data from the Philippine mirror of the COVID-19 SOLIDARITY trial – an international clinical trial launched by the World Health Organization (of which the Philippines is a participant) to help find effective therapeutics for COVID-19. It was eventually used to manage other randomized controlled trials (RCTs) for COVID-19 therapeutics. Aside from managing clinical trial data, REDCap was (and continues to be) utilized by PGH for the management of COVID-19 patients: inpatient admission, management of laboratory tests and therapeutics, and patient discharge. REDCap was used to develop a COVID Patient Registry (CPR), which will act as a centralized repository of COVID-19 patient data. REDCap’s ease of use, proven security, rapid deployability, and low maintenance cost (compared to other commercially available Clinical Data Capture solutions) paved the way for its rapid adoption in various COVID-19 efforts.
As such, in response to the designation of the Philippine General Hospital (PGH) as one of the then three COVID-19 referral centers in the National Capital Region, several faculty, researchers, and data scientists from the UPLB College of Veterinary Medicine (UPLB-CVM), UP Manila College of Medicine and College of Public Health (UP Manila CM/CPH), and the University of San Agustin Center for Informatics (USA-CFI) jointly volunteered to assist the PGH COVID-19 study group in managing the hospital’s COVID-19 clinical data through REDCap.
Having extensive experience in REDCap, a multidisciplinary data management team, a dedicated training program, and a comprehensive Data Governance policy, the REDCap team (of UPLB-CVM, UPM CM/CPH, and USA-CFI) leveraged their collective expertise and resources to rapidly develop various data collection tools for the PGH COVID-19 study group. The majority of the trainings for REDCap users was provided by the REDCap team members of UP Manila, while actual data collection was managed and performed by the PGH COVID-19 study group (which coincidentally, included REDCap team members from UP Manila). REDCap tools for COVID-19 were collectively developed by all three institutions, while maintenance of the REDCap backend (server and administration) was jointly handled by UPLB-CVM and USA-CFI.
REDCap was initially rolled out to manage data from the Philippine mirror of the COVID-19 SOLIDARITY trial – an international clinical trial launched by the World Health Organization (of which the Philippines is a participant) to help find effective therapeutics for COVID-19. It was eventually used to manage other randomized controlled trials (RCTs) for COVID-19 therapeutics. Aside from managing clinical trial data, REDCap was (and continues to be) utilized by PGH for the management of COVID-19 patients: inpatient admission, management of laboratory tests and therapeutics, and patient discharge. REDCap was used to develop a COVID Patient Registry (CPR), which will act as a centralized repository of COVID-19 patient data. REDCap’s ease of use, proven security, rapid deployability, and low maintenance cost (compared to other commercially available Clinical Data Capture solutions) paved the way for its rapid adoption in various COVID-19 efforts.
Post-pandemic and the future of the RUC
After the easing of pandemic restrictions, the RUC resumed engaging in various events such as the Philippine Datathon last September 29 - October 1, 2023, where it participated as Bronze Sponsor. Selected RUC members participated in the datathon and promoted the use of REDCap to the event participants. The RUC also launched its fifth REDCap Workshop last June 19, 2024 at the University of San Agustin, Iloilo, where participants from different institutions in the Philippines were taught the use of REDCap for data collection, management, analysis, and research. More workshops are currently being planned in other locations to reach a broader audience and potential collaborators in the future.
The RUC continues to be active in numerous research efforts - both within the consortium and in collaboration with government and private hospitals, universities, and research institutions. The consortium is currently in active partnership with various groups, academic/research institutions, and programs such as the Pediatric Infectious Disease Society of the Philippines, Multi-Omics Research Program for Health (MORPH), Vaccine Immune Response and Outcome Monitoring with Epitope Sequences (VIROMES), Outcomes of Patients with Moderate to Severe SARS-CoV-2 Infection and Abnormal Coagulation Parameters in a Philippine Tertiary Hospital (OriGin), and Makati Medical Center, to name a few. The RUC continues to actively promote data digitization and good data governance (through the use of REDCap) in seminars, conferences, and training events, and continues to forge collaborations with other institutions in the Philippines and abroad.
The RUC continues to be active in numerous research efforts - both within the consortium and in collaboration with government and private hospitals, universities, and research institutions. The consortium is currently in active partnership with various groups, academic/research institutions, and programs such as the Pediatric Infectious Disease Society of the Philippines, Multi-Omics Research Program for Health (MORPH), Vaccine Immune Response and Outcome Monitoring with Epitope Sequences (VIROMES), Outcomes of Patients with Moderate to Severe SARS-CoV-2 Infection and Abnormal Coagulation Parameters in a Philippine Tertiary Hospital (OriGin), and Makati Medical Center, to name a few. The RUC continues to actively promote data digitization and good data governance (through the use of REDCap) in seminars, conferences, and training events, and continues to forge collaborations with other institutions in the Philippines and abroad.
Meet the RUC Team
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Ma. Amelita C. Estacio
Team Leader Romulo J. de Castro Assistant Team Leader Salvador Eugenio C. Caoili Assistant Team Leader Therese Marie A. Collantes Assistant Team Leader Raphael Nelo C. Aguila Administrator and Data Coordinator Saubel Ezrael A. Salamat Administrator and Data Coordinator |
Fresthel Monica M. Climacosa
Data Coordinator and Application Specialist Ruby Anne King Application Specialist Pia Regina Fatima Zamora-Rico Application Specialist Jhon Flashier Fabul Administrator Kim Justin N. Muncal Administrator Alanna Marie Panes Researcher |