Research Guides: Pharmaceutical Sciences: Finding and Managing Data

Get Help with Data and Statistics

For help finding data or statistics, start by contacting your subject librarian.

For help using R, introductory Python or SPSS, check out the Research Commons workshops and one-on-one consultations.

For help managing your own research data, please see the Research Data Management guide.

For help analyzing or using data, UBC's Department of Statistics offers a range of free and fee-based services. The Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences also offers fee-based statistical consulting.

Finding Existing Data

Health Statistics & Data
by Ursula Ellis Last Updated Mar 14, 2024 635 views this year

Finding Regulatory and Unpublished Study Data

Clinical study reports are extensive documents produced by pharmaceutical companies for regulatory agencies such as Health Canada, the FDA or EMA. Sometimes summaries of clinical study reports are available online, but obtaining the full report may not be possible.

Some pharmaceutical companies are now allowing researchers more access to the data included in CSRs and ongoing clinical trials. For more information see:

Clinical Information - Health Canada
Portal launched in 2019 to host clinical study reports for drugs and devices.
Drugs@FDA database
Check the "Approval History" section of a drug's record to look for details on study data.
Clinical Study Data Request
Restoring Invisible and Abandoned Trials: Data Access
Directory of pharmaceutical company data sharing policies and contacts.
Beyond PubMed: searching the "grey literature" for clinical trial results
How to use FDA drug approval documents for evidence syntheses
Ladanie Aviv et al, BMJ 2018; 362 :k2815
Vivli
Includes data from over 4000 clinical trials, from 8 companies.

Manage Your Research Data

Research data is data created or generated as part of a research project, and may include numeric data, text, transcripts, images, video and audio recordings, and more. Good research data management prevents data loss, stores data securely and facilitates data sharing.

UBC Library offers advice and services for research data management, including

DMP (Data Management Plan) Assistant - an online tool to help you create a plan that complies with funding agency requirements
UBC Dataverse at Scholars Portal - a repository provided by UBC Library to help you manage, store and share your data
"Good Enough" Research Data Management - a brief guide for busy people
UBC Library Data Guide - a guide with suggestions for and examples of best practices

Learn more at the UBC Library Research Data Management Website and with the Research Data Alliance's Training Materials, or attend one of UBC Library’s workshops. Check the instruction calendar for dates and times.

ORCID iD

Part of managing your research data includes managing your author profile, allowing your citations to be properly attributed and linked to you. One type of author profile is linked to an ORCID iD, a type of personal persistent identifier. ORCID is an international non-profit organization.

ORCID provides a persistent digital identifier (an ORCID iD) that you own and control, and that distinguishes you from every other researcher. You can connect your iD with your professional information — affiliations, grants, publications, peer review, and more. You can use your iD to share your information with other systems, ensuring you get recognition for all your contributions, saving you time and hassle, and reducing the risk of errors.

An ORCID iD is yours, for your entire career. Even if your name changes or you move between countries, postings, or fields, your ORCID iD remains unchanged.