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VA Cooperative Studies Program (CSP)

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Cooperative Studies Program Epidemiology Centers (CSPECs)

Mission

We design and conduct state-of-the-art population research on health and disease to enhance our understanding of their determinants, treatments, and outcomes in order to improve the health, well-being, and care of Veterans and all Americans.

Program Summary

CSP Epidemiology Centers (CSPECs) provide scientific expertise, human capital, data, and research infrastructure to conduct epidemiologic research on Veterans’ health and their disease burden for the Department of Veterans Affairs and the nation. We're centrally directed to respond to VA and congressional requests on Veteran health. In our work we:

  • design and conduct large-scale observational epidemiologic studies
  • create and maintain data resources to support VA research

Studies
Our studies address genetic, molecular, and environmental risk factors for Veterans as a group, specific populations, certain diseases and disorders, or within a focused topic area. 

Data resources
We curate, enhance, and facilitate sharing of study data, registries, and repositories which in turn maximizes the impact of Federal money invested into research. Examples include:

  • Integrated Veteran Epidemiologic Study Data Resource (INVESTD-R) provides a means for qualified researchers to access epidemiologic research data, biospecimens, and participant contact information from Veterans for use in secondary data analysis or new data collection. All resources come from experimental, observational, and clinical trial studies conducted by CSP.

  • CSP Epidemiology Analytics Resource (CSPEAR) extracts, analyzes, and summarizes large amounts of VA data about Veteran health status into brief, scientifically reliable reports. These reports allow VA leadership to make informed decisions about research priorities, health care needs, and how to best plan interventions.

In addition, we've developed a data curating resource that compiles CSP study data with VA Corporate Data Warehouse resources and non-VA administrative data (including Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, National Death Index, Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results Program) into a usable format. 

Quality Statement

The CSPEC Quality Statement describes our commitment to maintaining the highest standard of quality with regard to participant safety, scientific output as it relates specifically to data quality, and general efficiency of the program.

Locations

Massachusetts Veterans Epidemiology Research and Information Center (MAVERIC) - Boston, MA 
Cooperative Studies Program Epidemiology Center - Durham (CSPEC-Durham) - Durham, NC
Pharmacogenomics Analysis Laboratory (PAL) - Little Rock, AR
Palo Alto Epidemiology Research and Information Center (ERIC) for Genomics - Palo Alto, CA 
Seattle Epidemiologic Research and Information Center (ERIC) - Seattle, WA
Clinical Epidemiology Research Center (CERC) - West Haven, CT

Selected studies, registries, and repositories

Studies

Registries and repositories   

 

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