The availability of open research data is a key component of pandemic preparedness and response. However, the speed of data collection and sharing needs to be balanced with accuracy, which takes time. In public health emergencies, the challenge is the trade-off between timeliness and precision.
On 28th May 2020, the Research Data Alliance (RDA) published the pre-final version of the RDA COVID-19 Recommendations and Guidelines. The aim is to help researchers, policymakers and funders maximise timely, quality data sharing and appropriate responses to health emergencies, particularly COVID-19. The document covers four research areas – clinical data, omics practices, epidemiology and social sciences and is complemented by overarching areas focusing on legal and ethical considerations, research software, community participation and indigenous data.
To save you time, the CeRIS selected in the RDA document the main principles to remember and summarized it in a one page document.
To have more precise and concrete information (e.g. to find the repository or standards you need for your data), you should go directly to the part concerning your scientific field:
- Data Sharing in Clinical Medicine
- Data Sharing in Omics Practices
- Data Sharing in Epidemiology
- Data Sharing in Social Sciences
- Community Participation and Data Sharing
- Indigenous Populations and Data Sharing
- Research Software and Data Sharing
- Legal and Ethical Considerations
Please note that in this document the terms guidelines and recommendations are distinguished as follows:
- guidelines aim to help researchers follow best practices to maximise the efficiency of their work and provide detailed advice pertaining to the practice of research data sharing.
- recommendations aim to help policymakers and funders maximise timely, quality data sharing and appropriate responses to health emergencies.
