American Spine Registry Data Submission

Submitting data to the American Spine Registry (ASR) is a simple process. After participating sites collect the necessary data elements, they can submit their data through the RegistryInsights^® data upload process, via a secure file transfer protocol (SFTP), or via a hypertext transfer protocol secure (HTTPS).

Data Submission Best Practices

• Submit data monthly
• Consult with your site’s IT team to set up automated reports
• Monitor data submission uploads and address errors with RegistryInsights

Decreasing Data Entry Burden

• ASR has partnered with technology vendors to facilitate the data submission process
• Reuse data that already exists in medical record, practice management, and patient reported outcome (PRO) systems

If you are experiencing issues related to submitting data to the ASR, please contact ASR Support at Support@AmericanSpineRegistry.org or visit our FAQs page.

ASR Data Elements Collected

The ASR collects cervical spine and lumbar spine procedures in three data types: procedural, post-operative, and patient-reported outcome measures (PROMs) data. Procedural data is patient-related, hospital/practice-related, surgeon-related, and procedure-related data that includes information about comorbidities, length of stay, and operative complications. Post-operative data includes 90-day readmission data and post-operative complications data. A PROM is a survey that captures a patient’s self-assessment regarding their health status and may include questions related to physical function, mental attitude, mobility, social function, and bodily pain.

ASR sites can choose between two levels of participation: Standard and Vanguard. Standard participants collect and submit the base requirement of data, while Vanguard participants collect and submit optional additional data Smartforms are available to both Standard and Vanguard sites. They are available in electronic and paper form. Vanguard sites are encouraged to submit the smartform, electronic or paper, because it captures specific details not obtained simply through ICD9/10 codes.

*Vanguard sites utilize a smartform for additional procedural and diagnosis detail
**Vanguard sites pursue longer PROMs post-operative follow-up (minimum one year) compared to standard sites (minimum 90 days)

The Data Specifications Annual Sunset Cycle

Since we’re always evolving the ASR to ensure there’s value, we need to update our data elements on a regular basis. Routinely updating the Data Specifications is necessary to improve the quality of data collected, reduce the data entry burden, and grow with the profession. To simplify this process, we implemented a Data Specifications Annual Sunset Cycle. View the diagram below for key dates to keep in mind.

Interested in viewing the ASR Data Specifications or Data Dictionary? These documents are proprietary and can be accessed in the Tools & Resources tab on RegistryInsights. For more information, please contact ASR staff at Info@AmericanSpineRegistry.org.

Accessing Submitted Data

There are two ways to access ASR data:

• RegistryInsights – A platform that allows your site to view the data for your spine procedures
• Custom Reports – Our Analytics team can create custom aggregated reports. Custom reports can help participating sites understand and package their data into an actionable format. The reports can include site-specific metrics and shape continuous improvements to the dashboards provided.

ASR Program Data Security Measures to Ensure Patient Privacy

We are HIPAA and HITECH Compliant

We’re a Health Information Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA) and Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health (HITECH) Act compliant organization. This has led to us documenting and implementing policy, as well as training employees according to the regulations. Some of the data we collect will qualify as protected health information (PHI) under HIPAA Privacy and Security rules. The ASR takes data security seriously and employs several steps to safeguard patient privacy.

We utilize industry-wide best security practices when it comes to the integrity and safeguarding of our sensitive information. You can be confident in knowing that we have employed internal risk management practices to ensure the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of your data. We’ve activated strong authentication measures and strong encryption algorithms that meet industry standard criteria. In addition, we’ve implemented administrative, physical, and technical safeguards to protect the availability, confidentiality, and integrity of the confidential patient information.

Our Annual Audit Confirms Data Integrity

You can be confident about your site’s data integrity. To ensure that the ASR’s data and reporting are as accurate as possible, every year we undergo a third-party audit of a sample of our participating sites.