NIH Data Management and Sharing Policy

A Data Management and Sharing Plan (DMSP) is a brief document that is required by many grant applications. The purpose of a DMSP is to provide details on the management and sharing of research data.

NIH has developed an optional DMSP template that has all the NIH-recommended elements. In the sections below, we've outlined the considerations for each recommended part and provided links to related resources.

OHSU investigators and their staff can log in with OHSU credentials to use the DMPTool to create an NIH data management plan and request feedback from library experts. Check the library calendar of events for upcoming workshops to help you get the most out of DMPTool.

Element 1 of the NIH DMSP asks you to describe:

• What data will be generated during the project
• Which data will or will not be shared, and why
• How the data will be documented for others to interpret and reuse

When writing this section, consider:

• The types and amount of data you will produce or use
• Ethical, legal, or technical factors that may limit what data you keep or share
• How much processing the data will undergo (e.g., whether only de-identified or summarized data can be shared)
• The metadata and documentation you will provide to support data understanding and reuse

Consider whether any specialized tools are needed to access or use the shared data for reuse or replication. If so, explain how others can access these tools.

Standards help ensure that data and related materials are stored, organized, and described in ways that are consistent and support reusing the data.

When completing this part of your plan, describe the data formats, metadata standards, and documentation methods (such as data dictionaries and README files) you will use and share with your data. If you are working with an OHSU Research Core, consider contacting them to learn which standards they use for data collection and processing.

There are several ways to preserve and make scientific data discoverable. In this section of your plan, describe where and when your research data will be made available.

When preparing this part of your plan, keep in mind:

• NIH expects data to be shared as early as possible, and no later than the time of a related publication or the end of the award period.
• Data should remain publicly accessible for as long as it is useful to the broader scientific community.
• NIH encourages the use of established repositories, including NIH-managed, domain-specific, or generalist repositories.
• Some data may require additional preparation, safeguards, or controlled access before they can be shared.

Some data requires additional preparation, safeguards, or controlled access. In this section, describe any legal, ethical, or technical factors that could affect future access to, distribution of, or reuse of your data. This section is especially important for research involving human participants.

When writing this section, consider:

• Restrictions imposed by federal, tribal, state, or local laws, regulations, policies, or agreements (current or anticipated)
• Privacy and confidentiality protections required by applicable laws and guidelines
• Issues related to informed consent and how it may affect future data sharing
• Any limitations on future data use that should be communicated to those managing or sharing the data (e.g., repository staff)

Describe how compliance with this plan will be monitored and managed, the frequency of oversight, and by whom at your institution (e.g., titles, roles). In addition to briefly describing how you and your research team will manage day-to-day compliance activities, you can include the following language about OHSU OPAM's processes:

"The Office of Proposal and Award Management (OPAM) at Oregon Health & Science University, which will be administering this award, has created a data management and sharing plan compliance system as part of their process for submitting the annual NIH progress report. OPAM will secure certification from the PI that the DSMP is compliant as approved. If the PI cannot certify compliance, OPAM will work with the team to ensure non-compliance is adequately addressed."