NCHS RDC Locations

RDC sites

The National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS) manages several Research Data Center (RDC) sites.

Hyattsville, MD

Research Data Center
Metro IV Building
3311 Toledo Road, Room 5580
Hyattsville, Maryland 20782

Atlanta, GA

Research Data Center
Corporate Square – Building 11, Room 1031
11 Corporate Blvd NE
Atlanta, GA 30329

Rockville, MD

AHRQ Data Center Coordinator
Division of Survey Operations
Center for Financing, Access, and Cost Trends
Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality
5600 Fishers Lane
Mail Stop: 07W41A
Rockville, MD 20857

Statistical software

Multiple statistical software products are available at NCHS RDC workstations.

• Microsoft Office products
• SAS
• Stata
• SAS-callable SUDAAN
• R
• Python
• SPSS (version 19 only)

If you would like to use a different software product or add-ons, this may delay approval of your project, your access to the data, or both. Due to disclosure concerns, NCHS RDCs does do not allow all software and add-ons.

NCHS RDC staff do not provide technical assistance for any software packages. We also do not provide programming help. You are responsible for all programming during your NCHS RDC visit. You should know the basics of the analyses you wish to carry out.

Federal Statistical RDC users should contact the FSRDC to inquire about available software and related requirements and policies.

Before your visit

Scheduling your appointment

The NCHS RDC is open to researchers by appointment during business hours. NCHS RDC staff must monitor researchers when working in the RDC. Please schedule your appointment at least one week in advance to ensure we are able to accommodate your request.

The NCHS RDC allows up to two research team members to a workstation. Visits exceeding five days in a 90-day period may require a background check. Please let your RDC analyst know if this is a possibility.

Submitting electronic materials

You must provide us with your statistical programming code and reference documentation, including codebooks and statistical reference materials, before your appointment. Email these materials to your RDC analyst seven business days in advance of your scheduled visit. The RDC analyst will review the documents and upload them to the computer.

All files, programs, reference materials, and notes must be reviewed before these items can enter or leave the RDC facility.

RDC computers do not have access to the Internet. The RDC does not allow visiting researchers to load files onto RDC computers. Flash drives are not permitted. We discourage the use of hard copies and books in the RDC labs.

Merging data

An RDC analyst will merge the public use or non-NCHS external data that you provide with the restricted variables requested in your approved application. This will happen before your visit to the RDC. This allows us to maintain security and ensure that your dataset is ready for you when you visit.

During your visit

Your RDC analyst will schedule and supervise all visits. When necessary, your RDC analyst may plan for another RDC analyst to supervise your visit.

When you arrive

At all locations, you will need to show ID and sign in with the guard to receive a visitor pass.

At the Hyattsville and Rockville locations, the guard will contact the RDC from the front desk. At the Atlanta location, tell the guard your analyst's name and the guard will contact them from the front desk. You may also contact your analyst directly to let them know you've arrived.

You will walk through a metal detector and send anything you are carrying through an x-ray detector.

An RDC analyst will come to escort you to the RDC.

Rules

1. Do not work on multiple research projects

If you have multiple research projects, you are only allowed to work on one at a time. Do not attempt to access multiple projects or data from multiple projects in the same visit.

2. Do not remove individual-level data from the RDC

All codes, output, and notes must undergo disclosure review by your RDC analyst before removal from the RDC. Absolutely no individual-level data will leave the RDC facilities.

3. Do not bring electronic communication devices

The RDC reserves the right to search all materials brought into or leaving the RDC facility. Cell phones, pagers, laptops, cameras, and other electronic communication devices are not permitted in the RDC.

4. Do not bring reference materials that identify subjects

Do not bring items into the RDC that can be used to identify individuals or establishments, like information from voter registration records or a national hospital directory. Do not attempt to put any content or output in your code that would allow re-identification of a subject or establishment.

5. Do not attempt to obtain prohibited information

Any attempt to obtain prohibited information will result in an immediate suspension of the account and possible legal actions. Prohibited information includes any data or output that would not pass disclosure review.