I already have access to data about my subjects because of my position. Can I use that data for research purposes without consent?

No. Data you access because of your position is entrusted to you for a specific use. Research use is not normally included in the intended use of the data. You may be able to access the same data but would need to gain access through the same process that an outside researcher would use.

• e.g., a pharmacist may not access patient drug purchase data without permission from the patient and acknowledgement from the pharmacy owner, though the data is available to that researcher in the role of pharmacist.
• e.g., a teacher will have access to student grades, free-lunch status, IEP data, etc. for the purpose of education facilitation but does not have access to the data for the purposes of generalizable research.

Last updated: 2/21/2023