Overview

The Biostatistics Collaboration Center (BCC) is a Biostatistics resource that was made available to researchers at the Feinberg School of Medicine in June 2004,  the result of an initiative by the Dean’s Office, the Dean’s Research Council, and the Department of Preventive Medicine.  Our mission is to collaborate with faculty investigators in their conduct of high quality innovative research. The BCC is a resource for the biostatistical sciences.  The BCC will provide consulting services on statistics, programming and data management to any Northwestern University individual or group involved in medical research.  It is set up to assist researchers in making the best use of their resources through efficient study design and statistical analysis. The BCC also offers workshops and seminars on statistical methods in addition to collaboration.  BCC faculty also conduct methodological research to enhance the existing knowledge in statistics as related to collaborative research.  The BCC is housed in the Department of Preventive Medicine.  The Director of the BCC is Dr. Alfred Rademaker.  Faculty biostatisticians are available to serve as research collaborators and statistical consultants when needed.  Master-level statistical analysts and programmers work with the faculty biostatistician to provide programming and data management support.  The BCC is actively involved in research projects ranging from one-time consultations to long-term collaborative research.  We provide consultations in the following three areas:   

        Statistical Consultation
        Programming Consultation    
        Data Management Consultation

Co-authorship is generally expected on studies where substantive input on the design or analysis is provided. One-hour initial consultation to determine the needs of the investigator is available at no charge.  Statistical input for grant applications is also provided at no charge when the grant support for biostatistical effort requested by the BCC can be included in the grant submission. Beyond these no-charge services.  Some support is available at no charge through the Cancer Center or the Northwestern University Clinical and Translational Sciences Institute, Individual departments and units may have subscription arrangements with the BCC in which case some statistical support is available at no charge to those units.  In all other cases, the investigator will be charged on an hourly basis and billed monthly until the completion of the project.  Rates for consultation are $100 per hour and the cost of projects needs to be discussed, with some agreement between the investigator and the BCC, before the project begins.  To contact the BCC, please submit an online work request form.  If you have any questions, please contact us via e-mail at bcc@northwestern.edu.  For feedback regarding BCC work, please visit our feedback form online.