USE CASE

Frontline Research

Capture e-consent, randomize participants, and generate analysis-ready datasets.

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◆  E-Consent Capture
Participant Randomization
Analysis-Ready Datasets

The Challenge

Research teams gather data across many sites and participants, where small inconsistencies can undermine confidence in the results.

Working offline in the field

Enumerators collect data where networks fail.

Retaining participants over time

Longitudinal studies lose people between visits.

Training and turnover of staff

New enumerators need simple, guided data tools.

CommCare in action

CommCare for Research

HIGHLIGHT 1 · CONSENT

Capture ethical, high-quality research data

  • Capture informed consent digitally, ensuring ethical compliance and verifiable audit trails
  • Document consent timestamps, protecting researchers and participants
  • Design adaptive workflows that can adjust based on age, literacy level, or study arm
HIGHLIGHT 2 · RANDOMIZE

Randomize participants and manage study arms

  • Assign participants to study groups using built-in randomization algorithms
  • Logic-driven workflows ensure participants only see questions related to their study arm
  • Track enrollment numbers by group in real-time, helping you monitor your targets
HIGHLIGHT 3 · TRACK

Track participants across timepoints and visits

  • Track individuals from registration to follow-ups, with complete data history at every visit
  • Set automatic reminders for scheduled visits and flag overdue participants
  • Access historical data at each visit to spot changes across timepoints
HIGHLIGHT 4 · SECURE

Protect sensitive data with confidence

  • Control exactly who sees what data with granular role-based permissions
  • Export datasets with participant identifiers automatically removed, ensuring data privacy
  • HIPAA and GDPR compliant, SOC 2 certified infrastructure

Want to see how this would work for your next study?

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PARTNER STORIES

Researchers, powered by CommCare

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ACROSS SECTORS

Programmatic research, built for every sector.

Use the power of CommCare to run studies on the same platform as your program, in any sector.

See it tuned for
Any sector

Studies on your program platform, in any domain.

Survey collection, longitudinal cohort tracking, and study management, across every sector CommCare serves. Pick a sector to see how it tunes.

  • Multi-arm survey logic with skip patterns
  • Longitudinal cohort tracking over years
  • Audit trails and consent capture built in
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COMMON QUESTIONS

Frontline Research FAQs

Study Design & Fit

What types of research studies can use CommCare?
CommCare is proven across the full lifecycle of frontline research: observational studies, field data collection, experimental and intervention research, and programmatic implementations. It’s common in public health, but works across agriculture, education, sanitation, and other disciplines.
How does CommCare handle longitudinal data collection?
CommCare's case management lets researchers track participants over time, linking every data point to the same individual across visits for a complete longitudinal record.
Which studies, past or ongoing, have used CommCare?
Hundreds of studies from top universities and institutions worldwide use CommCare for frontline data collection and digital health interventions. Explore the evidence base of 120 peer-reviewed studies, including eight randomized controlled trials.
Is CommCare suitable for multi-site or international research?
Yes. Universities and institutions worldwide use CommCare, including ACIAR, AMREF, BRAC, Boston University, Duke, Emory, Georgetown, Harvard, ICAP at Columbia, KEMRI, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, MUST, UCSD, UCSF, and UNC.
Can CommCare be used in educational settings?
Yes. Dimagi has brought CommCare into classrooms at universities including Boston College, Boston University, Duke, UNC Chapel Hill, Notre Dame, and the University of Turin, across courses from Intro to Social Impact through advanced Master of Public Health (MPH) courses on Designing and Implementing Global Digital Health Interventions.

Operations & Support

How does CommCare ensure data security for sensitive research?
Your data is always encrypted and stored in a HIPAA, GDPR, and SOC 2-compliant environment. Tighten further with role-based access, data de-identification, and two-factor authentication. CommCare is also 21 CFR Part 11-ready.
Can CommCare work in remote field settings with limited connectivity?
Yes, CommCare is offline-first. Research teams can collect data without internet, and data automatically syncs when connectivity returns, making CommCare ideal for studies in remote or resource-constrained environments.
Can CommCare integrate with other research tools and software?
Yes. Link your CommCare data with Excel dashboards refreshed on a schedule, maintain a 1-click OData connection to Tableau or Power BI, and use the Data Export Tool for SQL or statistical software.
Does CommCare have experience with grant applications?
Yes, several NIH-funded projects have used CommCare. Dimagi happily provides letters of support and other guidance during your application process.
How can I get started?
Sign up for a free CommCare account and design your research application with the no-code builder. For complex protocols, Dimagi offers onboarding and implementation support to translate your study design into a digital application.

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LET’S TALK

Interested in how CommCare can support your frontline research work?

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