OpenSAFELY Project Feasibility Self Assessment Tool

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  • OpenSAFELY Project Feasibility Self Assessment Tool

  • Can I use OpenSAFELY for my research project?

    Welcome. The aim of this tool is to help you decide whether your research project can be carried out using OpenSAFELY; a highly secure, transparent, open-source software platform for analysis of electronic health records data.

    You will be asked a short series of questions about your project. Take your time to read each question carefully. Once you have completed the questions, the tool will tell you whether your project is likely to be feasible using OpenSAFELY.

    This tool is based on the OpenSAFELY Project Feasibility Assessment Checklist, developed to give clear, early guidance to researchers and analysts interested in using the OpenSAFELY platform.

    To help you with terminology, a "Glossary" button is available at the top of every page. All links to glossary items or other websites appear in blue text and open in a new window.


    OpenSAFELY is built, managed and maintained by a team at the Bennett Institute, University of Oxford. NHS England is the data controller and make the decision about which projects run.

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  • DATA REQUIREMENTS

  • OpenSAFELY provides access to national-scale health datasets.

    Currently available English datasets are:

    • General practice coded events (diagnoses, symptoms/obs, procedures, prescriptions, vaccines, appointments, demographics, births, deaths) for patients registered in TPP practices since 2009;
    • Hospital spells (from 2016), outpatients (from 2019) and A&E (from 2019), for patients registered in TPP practices, with a core set of commonly used fields available;
    • ONS deaths (from 2019), including date and all causes.

    For more information on the available datasets, please refer to the Data Sources section of the OpenSAFELY documentation.

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  • NOTE: Consider whether the datasets you need exist within OpenSAFELY and whether they contain enough relevant detail to answer your research question. “Available” means the data are present in OpenSAFELY; “Sufficient” means they are complete, specific, and suitable for your planned analysis.

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  • SOFTWARE AND ANALYSIS TOOLS

  • OpenSAFELY is designed for large-scale, secure, and reproducible analysis of electronic health records. However, not all software packages, libraries, or computational methods are available by default. The platform supports a defined set of tools and environments to maintain data security, consistency, and reproducibility across projects.

    Currently supported software includes:

    Programming languages: Python, R, and Stata
    Version control: Git and GitHub for collaborative code management
    Containerisation: Docker (for local testing; optional)

    For more information on software and supported analysis tools (e.g., R packages) please see here.

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  • NOTE: Some specialised tools or methods may not yet be supported. If your project depends on specific software, packages, or computationally intensive methods that are not currently available, please get in touch to discuss feasibility and potential workarounds before applying.

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  • POLICY COMPLIANCE

  • All research conducted within OpenSAFELY must adhere to the OpenSAFELY Policies for Researchers, which set out the full requirements for conducting research on the platform.

     

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  • NOTE: You should review the OpenSAFELY Policies for Researchers carefully to ensure your project does not conflict with any restrictions, such as the release of individual identifiers, or use of non-SDC-supported methods. 

     

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  • ETHICS AND GOVERNANCE

  • All research conducted within the OpenSAFELY Service must comply with the research ethics requirements of NHS England.

    If you are unsure, you can take a look at the OpenSAFELY Research Ethics Compliance policy to understand what ethics your project requires. If you are in any doubt, please contact us.

     

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  • ETHICS AND GOVERNANCE

  • At least one member of your project team will need to have completed a Safe Researcher Training course before a project application can be submitted. We accept qualifications from the Office for National Statistics and the UK Data Service.

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  • ETHICS AND GOVERNANCE

  • The employer of the applicant submitting a project application must have a Data Sharing Framework Contract (DSCF) with NHS England in order for their project to be approved.

    A DSFC is the legal terms and conditions that an organisation formally signs up to with NHS England to allow data sharing. A project cannot be approved unless the applicant’s employer is covered by an active DSFC. You may submit an OpenSAFELY application before a DSFC is in place, but your project will only be approved once the DSFC has been signed and is active.

    If you are unsure whether your employer already has a valid DSFC with NHS England, we can help you check.

     

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  • USER READINESS AND COMPLIANCE

  • At least one member of the project team must complete the Getting Started tutorial. This tutorial introduces the OpenSAFELY ecosystem and provides hands-on experience using OpenSAFELY tools in a simulated environment that mirrors the secure research platform (without accessing real patient data). For more information, see the OpenSAFELY Getting Started tutorial page on the OpenSAFELY documentation website.

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  • USER READINESS AND COMPLIANCE

  • At least one team member must demonstrate prior experience working with electronic health record (EHR) data. Familiarity with EHRs enables users to interpret complex clinical data accurately, define study populations appropriately, and manage data efficiently. This experience also supports reproducible analyses and informed collaboration with healthcare professionals.

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  • NOTE: If no members of your team have experience working with EHR data, you are strongly encouraged to discuss your project with us before applying, and, where appropriate, seek opportunities to upskill or collaborate with users who have the necessary expertise.

     

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  • USER READINESS AND COMPLIANCE

  • OpenSAFELY projects are delivered using a specific set of tools and technical environments designed to maintain secure and reproducible research. To support safe and effective project delivery, at least one member of your project team should have prior experience using the tools listed below.

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  • NOTE: If no members of your team have experience with the tools listed above, you are strongly encouraged to discuss your project with us before applying, and, where appropriate, seek opportunities to upskill or collaborate with users who have the necessary expertise.

     

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  • USER READINESS AND COMPLIANCE

  • To deliver a successful project in OpenSAFELY, your team must have enough time to commit to completing the project once approved. We know this should go without saying for most researchers! But for newcomers, we don’t want to gloss over what might be a significant investment of time and effort. Make sure everyone on your team is aware of this.

    For further guidance on project planning and resource requirements please refer to Step 1 of our application guidance.

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