Preparing for the New NIH Data Management and Sharing Policy

Abstract

The Taubman Health Sciences Library (THSL) at the University of Michigan established the Research Data Core Team (Data Team) to raise awareness and educate people about the new Data Management & Sharing Policy released by the National Institutes of Health (NIH). This was accomplished with an initial outreach phase, followed by an engagement phase.Outreach was launched by updating a LibGuide with information about the new policy, creating a slide for digital screens, and producing a short video. For the engagement phase, a presentation was created to review the policy’s main points, emphasizing that a Data Management and Sharing (DMS) Plan needed to be included in grant applications.Throughout the Fall 2022 and Winter 2023 semesters, the Data Team facilitated eight presentations, two workshops, and two office hours. Increased LibGuide views peaked at 1,873 in January. The Data Team anticipates continuing outreach and engagement after seeing how the NIH responds to the first DMS Plans.