Our Work
Access to GEMINI Data
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Prospective GEMINI collaborators looking to access GEMINI Data for research purposes must submit a Project Proposal Form for review by the Projects and Publications Committee.
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GEMINI Data Access Levels
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A GEMINI collaborator may access GEMINI Data by two different methods:
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Directly, by accessing the GEMINI Data platform at HPC4Health
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Through the support of a GEMINI Data Analyst, who analyzes and summarizes GEMINI Data on behalf of and in collaboration with the Researcher, as per the research protocol​
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GEMINI operates using a partial cost-recovery model for data access and analytical support. Fees may apply.
HPC4Health is a high-performance computational Unix-based environment that is used to directly access GEMINI data. We recommend that users be comfortable with basic Unix commands and have familiarity with R and/or Python. The following tools are available: RStudio Workbench, GitLab and slurm. There is no internet access or use of Microsoft software on HPC4Health. Additional onboarding and training material are provided after access has been granted.
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The workflow below outlines the process of submitting a GEMINI Project Proposal and accessing GEMINI Data. The overall process should take 5-6 weeks to complete, depending on how quickly required forms are submitted.
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Please contact GEMINI.Research@unityhealth.to with any questions.
Documents for Download
Submitting a Project Proposal
Researcher: a Researcher submitting a Project Proposal Form to seek permission to access GEMINI Data for research purposes.
GEMINI: various roles from GEMINI at Unity Health Toronto. They include, but are not limited to, the Projects and Publications Committee, Data Analyst, System Administrator, and Research Operations.
Please contact GEMINI.Research@unityhealth.to with any questions.
Step 1
The Researcher submits "Part A" of the GEMINI Project Proposal Form to GEMINI.Research@unityhealth.to. An example of a completed Project Proposal Form can be found here.
Step 2
The GEMINI Projects & Publications Committee ("Committee") reviews the Project Proposal within 10 business days of the submission. If the Project Proposal requires further discussion, it will be reviewed at the next Committee meeting (within an additional 10 business days). GEMINI Research Operations notifies the researcher of the proposal status. If Project Proposal is not approved, the researcher resubmits the Project Proposal having reviewed and addressed the Committee's comments.
Step 3
Once the Committee has approved the Project Proposal, GEMINI Research Operations will communicate this with the researchers and tell them how to proceed. If a data analyst is required, research operations will tell the researcher to fill out "Part B" of the Project Proposal form (see step 5). If a data analyst is not needed, research operations will ask the researcher who needs access to the data to initiate the onboarding process (see step 4).
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GEMINI Research Operations will also submit a Research Ethics Board (REB) amendment for the Project Proposal to be formally reviewed by the Unity Health Toronto (UHT) REB Office. The REB Office will review the Project Proposal within 10 business days.
Step 4
The Researcher(s) requesting direct access to GEMINI Data are required to be credentialed as a Research Visitor at UHT prior to starting the project. GEMINI Research Operations supports the Researcher throughout the credentialing process by providing the forms and links to be completed. The Researcher is required to complete the UHT Research Visitor form, UHT training modules and the TCPS2: CORE training. Once these requirements are met, the Researcher receives an UHT email account and is added as a Researcher Visitor to the GEMINI Hospital Cohort Study by the UHT REB. This takes 3-4 weeks to complete.
Step 5
For Researchers requiring direct access to GEMINI Data, GEMINI Systems Administrator grants access to the GEMINI Data platform within 2 business days of completing all credentialing requirements (approved Project Proposal, all items in Step 4 and a signed copy of the GEMINI End User Agreement).
For researchers requiring GEMINI analytical support for their project, a GEMINI Data Analyst is assigned to the project and begins working on the project once all requirements are met:
1) "Part A"- completed and approved Project Proposal
2) "Part B"- completed and approved Project Proposal
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"Part B" must be completed before the data analyst assigned can move forward (schedule the "Analysis Kick-off Meeting" to begin working on the project).
Step 6
For Researchers requiring direct access to GEMINI Data, project-specific datacuts will be created for each approved project. The GEMINI Data Team will review the Project Proposal and work with Researchers to develop this datacut. This will take at least 10 business days after all approvals are completed.