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Accuracy of on-site data entry in a rural primary care research network
1College of Human Medicine, Michigan State University, Upper Peninsula Campus, Escanaba, USA.
Objective:
This study examined how accurately research data can be entered into a database by rural research network members with little computer training and no data-entry experience.
Methods:
A rural primary care research network in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan collected data from a study, and each practice entered its data on a standard database. The data were then sent electronically to the main research center where they were downloaded and analyzed. Accuracy of data entry was evaluated by comparing data received at the center with data on the original questionnaire.
Results:
Accuracy of the data, entered by practice coordinators (nurses) with little or no computer experience, was completed with an error rate of one error per 220 keystrokes or .22 errors per 1,000 keystrokes.
Conclusions:
Results indicate that remote data entry in research networks can be accomplished accurately and reliably with little training.