What is a Data Handling Plan and what does it cover?

• A. A plan describing data collection, storage, security, transformation, and reporting to ensure traceability and integrity
• B. A plan describing data deletion and disposal only
• C. A plan for staff rosters and vacation scheduling
• D. A plan for marketing the study results

Answer: (A)

A Data Handling Plan outlines how data from a study are managed across the entire lifecycle to ensure traceability and data integrity. It covers how data are collected, stored, protected, transformed, and reported, including who can access data, how data quality is ensured, and how changes are tracked with audit trails. It also addresses metadata, backup and retention, data security measures, and how results are documented and shared. This comprehensive scope keeps data reliable and auditable from collection through analysis to final reporting. The other options miss the breadth of data management: deletion and disposal alone omits collection, security, transformation, and reporting; staff rosters or marketing ideas are unrelated to how data are handled.