The AUA Data Committee is pleased to announce a new Data Research Program that will be introduced this year. The AUA has been building a comprehensive data repository in urology that would allow researchers to conduct studies from clinical, workforce, and policy perspectives. The new AUA Data Research Program is aimed at connecting urology’s research community to the vast AUA resources to encourage the broad use of AUA data, with the assistance of AUA statisticians.

The AUA Data Department gained rich experience from operating the former Data Research Grant Program from 2014 to 2018. The former grant program funded 14 projects between 2015 and 2018 when it was discontinued because of financial constraints. Funding ranged from $25,000 to $50,000 per study, with $100,000 total awarded annually. This program resulted in tremendous knowledge generation, with 25 peer-reviewed publications and 28 presentations at national meetings.

The newly approved Data Research Program also is intended to stimulate the use of AUA data sources for knowledge generation and dissemination. For the inaugural cycle, a total of 6 projects (2 projects using AUA Quality [AQUA] Registry data and 4 projects using AUA Census data) will be selected and funded in the form of complimentary data access, statistician time (25 hours per Census project and 100 hours per AQUA project), and dissemination support in the amount of $2,000 per project. This will be equivalent to an awarded value of $10,000 per AUA Census project and $30,000 per AQUA Registry project. The first Request for Proposal process will start in May 2023.

An overview of the timeline for the AUA Data Research Program is included in the Table. The program will be repeated annually. Detailed application requirements, selection criteria, and program milestones will be available to applicants on the Data Research Program’s webpage. The program is open to all AUA members, including practicing urologists, residents and fellows, and advanced practice providers.

Submitted proposals will be reviewed by a scientific review group comprising AUA Data Committee members. Dr Hung-Jui (Ray) Tan (Chair of the AQUA Subcommittee of the AUA Data Committee) will serve as the panel chairperson.

Data to be used in the AUA Data Research Program include the following:

• Practice, provider, and patient data in the AQUA Registry.
• Disease-specific patient cohorts with well-documented information on initial and follow-up diagnoses, treatments, and outcomes.
• AUA Annual Census datasets from 2014 to the most recent year.

Starting with 5 nonmalignant urological disease cohorts (overactive bladder, BPH, stone disease, male incontinence, and erectile dysfunction), the data repository will continue to add more diseases and gradually expand to the cancer domain in the future.

The patient cohorts and the Census data will be linked using NPI numbers to support data research projects from both workforce and clinical perspectives. All interested investigators will have the opportunity to explore data dictionaries and data summaries online to help build their study hypotheses and research proposals. Once the projects are awarded, investigators will collaborate with AUA statisticians on research design, statistical analysis, and results dissemination, with valuable input and oversight from the AUA Data Research Review Panel.

The AUA Data Research Program will have several benefits for the AUA and the urology community: support the AUA’s mission of advancing urology through research by addressing key knowledge gaps related to urology care and workforce development; enhance the broad use of AUA data and increase AUA’s visibility in knowledge generation through presentations and publications; transform clinicians to physician scientists through exposure to clinical and workforce data and the building of mentoring relationships with experts in the AUA data subcommittees; and inform policymakers, payers, the urology community, other health care providers and the public about key issues in urology care.

Awardees are expected to provide reports to the AUA and communicate their findings in scholarly venues, such as at the AUA annual meeting and in high-impact, peer-reviewed journals. Moreover, investigators must complete the proposed deliverables on time.

The goal of this new Data Research Program is not only to increase knowledge in urology but to democratize access to AUA data resources. Early career investigators and AQUA Registry participants are encouraged to apply, especially given the unprecedented access to both AUA data and AUA statisticians.