Overview
The Biostatistics Collaboration Center (BCC) is a VUMC-sponsored core resource that provides, enhances, and/or facilitates statistical collaborations involving the design, conduct, analysis, or publication of biomedical research at Vanderbilt. The Department of Biostatistics comprises biostatisticians who can work with faculty on a variety of projects. It offers a wide range of highly trained experts for almost any collaboration. The department has considerable experience in designing, conducting, and analyzing large-scale clinical trials and research design for basic biomedical research. Consultants with various levels of expertise are available, from master's-level trained biostatisticians to full professors.
The BCC is a revenue-neutral university resource. Rates are based on the technological and innovative resources necessary to perform the collaborative services described above. Rates have been calculated based on department personnel dedicated to research activities, explicitly excluding common professional activities unrelated to this specific project (e.g., teaching, seminars, administration, service, etc.). Vanderbilt University annually reviews the BCC to ensure that it complies with all applicable federal and state regulations, including Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles, and Audit Requirements for Federal Awards. Rates are adjusted annually to ensure that the BCC is operating on a strict non-profit cost-recovery basis.
History
In 2010 the Department of Biostatistics began allocating staff biostatistician time to projects using hourly billing based on a core-standard 1,500 billable hour work year. A change was made in July 2014 to enhance the culture of collaboration further and support academically productive partnerships wherein all biostatistics staff and faculty effort would be billed directly to each project as a percentage of salary and fringe benefit expenses. In addition, a scientific resource fee per 100% annual FTE (faculty and staff combined) would be billed to each project for allowable costs related to providing cutting-edge biostatistics support. Changes were made to the model, and some costs were reduced related to providing this service, thereby reducing the overall costs with the new rate.
Fees
The Department of Biostatistics faces real challenges in supporting personnel costs to meet the demands from other departments and centers. The School of Medicine created a model described here that allows the costs to be recovered from the sources requesting the assistance. The Scientific Resource Fee is calculated annually and is implemented typically at the beginning of a fiscal year. It is then billed using the VUMC iLab system, which generates monthly invoices for the client. Effective October 1, 2021, the Scientific Resource Fee is $7,980 per 100% FTE per year for internal Vanderbilt investigators. It is in addition to the faculty and staff percent-effort salary and fringe benefit charges.
Example of a BCC fee calculation: Project A has a faculty biostatistician at 5% annual effort and a staff biostatistician at 10% annual effort. The annual fee is $7,980 * (5%+10%) = $1,197. A fee of $99.75 would be billed monthly to Project A via VUMC iLab.
Grant Proposal Budget Justification
The following text may be used for grants where a statistician's time is part of the budget as a percent effort:
Department of Biostatistics staff and faculty project effort is billed directly to each project as a percentage of salary and fringe benefit expenses. In addition, a scientific resource fee of $7,980 per 100% annual FTE (faculty and staff combined) is billed to each project for allowable expenses necessary to perform the work of biostatisticians and computer systems analysts. These expenses are directly related to ensuring that each biostatistician has access to appropriate tools and other scientific resources that support each project, including the array of technologies needed to manage and analyze many types of data across the spectrum of biomedical research.
The biostatistics scientific resource fee is administratively managed through the Biostatistics Collaboration Center, a VUMC sponsored core resource. The VUMC Office of Research (OOR) annually reviews the BCC to ensure the best compliance with all applicable federal and state regulations, including uniform administrative requirements, cost principles, and audit requirements for federal awards. Rates are adjusted annually to ensure that the BCC operates on a strict non-profit cost-recovery basis. The scientific resource fee is billed monthly via the OOR centralized core billing system, iLab Operations Software.