Enrollment Closed

• We would like to thank all the fire department employees that participated in our study.

Your Privacy

Data Protection

Regulations

HIPAA:  The Privacy Rule of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act. This rule establishes regulations for the use and disclosure of protected health information. We treat all identifiable information as protected health information and comply with the Privacy Rule.

GCP: Good Clinical Practice guidelines are followed by all studies run at BWH and Partners.

Certificate.of.Confidentiality: We follow the guidelines laid out in the privacy certificate.

SOP's

Compliance is achieved by securing data physically and electronically. Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) are used to provide mandatory guidelines for data usage and handling of the data.

Data Separation

Identifiable data is physically separated from the main server after a short period restricting access to data to authorized users within the Partners intranet. Additional physical data security is outlined in the Security SOP. This SOP outlines procedures for physically securing the data such as filing cabinets, locked rooms, etc. If identifiable data is to be transported off site on data keys, the data is de-identified.

Electronic Security

Electronic data security is achieved by restricting access to the database server in a number of ways. The primary method to ensure privacy is by removing data from or encrypting identifiable data on the servers that are internet accessible. The database server is secured from the internet by placing it behind a firewall and restricting access to it. For example, only http and https (ports 80 and443) are accessible from the internet.

From our FAQ

What data will be collected during the study?

The survey has questions about your work hours, health, accidents, injuries, job satisfaction, and quality of life.

How will the data be kept confidential?

We realize that confidentiality is very important and have taken steps to ensure the privacy of all the data collected. We use subject codes in place of your name in our database so that the information you enter remains confidential. Additionally, the data we collect is protected from subpoena by federal statute.

Will the Fire Department or my labor organization be informed if I choose not to participate?

No, we will not share information about your decision to participate or not participate.

Will any data collected about me in the survey be shared with the Fire Department or the union?

No identifiable data collected through this survey will be shared with the department, union, or any other non-study personnel.

If I choose to participate now, will I be able to drop out later if I change my mind?

Yes. You are free to withdraw from the study at any time.