FAQ
Purpose and contents of the study:
The aim of DigiHero is to build up a research platform, which can be used for different projects and scientific questions. If you register for DigiHero, every now and then you will be invited to an online-survey, which mirrors a wide spectrum of health issues. By participating in DigiHero, you can actively make a contribution to research and science by donating your data and submitting topics of your interest.
DigiHero is a study for digital health research. That means the participants are invited to online-surveys, which mirror a wide spectrum of health issues, for instance, emergence of chronic illnesses, healthy aging, health behaviour, utilization of healthcare or physical and mental health. Since DigiHero started in the middle of the COVID-19 pandemic, there have been surveys on the impact of the pandemic, on the chains of transmission in households and on possible long-lasting symptoms of a COVID-19 infection (Long-COVID).
In addition to surveys, the study will use new, digital methods, such as wristwatches that can measure movement and pulse.
To participate in DigiHero, you need internet access und your own E-Mail-address. The surveys can be filled out on a computer, mobile phone, laptop, tablet or other device.
Any citizen with an email address and aged 18 or over can take part.
We are happy for anyone over the age of 18 to take part. There is no upper age limit. Experience showed that especially young adults participate in studies more seldom. We would therefore be very happy to reach people in this age group with our study.
Yes, all interested people who have not received an invitation by letter are invited to participate in our study. The more citizens who participate in the study, the more research questions our study can answer. Feel free to tell your family, friends, colleagues or acquaintances about DigiHero. You can register for our study here.
Yes, generally nothing speaks against a participation in two or more studies, as long as you fulfill the requirements of the respective study. We are happy about your participation.
There are no costs associated with your participation in our study. You will not be reimbursed for the cost of using the internet. Unfortunately, for financial reasons, we are unable to provide an expense allowance.
You will not get any direct benefits for your health by participating in this study. However, the results of our study may contribute to a better understanding of (chronic) diseases and risk factors, and thus contribute to better care and treatment programs in the future. Through your participation, you will be making an important contribution to the health of future generations.
An advantage of our study is the modular design. That means that we organise each survey and sub-study separately. Therefore, our study offers a lot of flexibility for the participants. Your participation in every survey and sub-study of DigiHero is always voluntary. There is no disadvantage in only agreeing to certain modules of the DigiHero study.
The DigiHero-study is made up of different modules, which are currently investigating the following topics: COVID-19, the development of chronic illnesses, healthy ageing, physical and mental well-being. The number of modules to explore these topics will depend on the current health issues and the number of participants who agree to take part in each module.
At the moment the study is planned for an unlimited time. From time to time, we want to follow-up participants for as long as possible on different health topics.
The latest COVID-19 situation showed scientists how important it is to publish their data as early as possible. We want to share our results with participants, the general population and decision-makers as early as possible and expect first results within the next six months.
We strive for a rapid publication of our results and want to provide those in a comprehensible form on our website.
Data protection, authorizations, and funding:
Each person we wrote to was selected at random. This means that the residents’ registration offices retrieved a random selection of addresses from the residents’ register. The residents’ registration offices are authorised to transfer the data in accordance with articles 34 and 46 of the Federal Registration Act, as our study is of public interest`.
You are free to decide whether you want to participate in our study.
You can read more about this topic here (only in German).
Information for recipients of the invitation letter can be found in this document.
Information for participants in the study on digital health research in Germany (DigiHero) can be found in this document.
We collect your personal information (such as your name, address and email address) for purposes such as informing you about new study modules. For these purposes only, your information is held on a secure and separate server that is only accessible to authorised study staff. The survey is pseudonymised, that means it uses a unique combination of numbers that cannot be traced back to you personally. Answers will be stored on a separate secure server. They will never be linked to your personal information.
The pseudonymised responses will be used for scientific publications. We will also make every effort to disseminate our results. We intend to continue our study until further notice. When the study is completed, the anonymised data will be kept for 10 years and then deleted.
You may withdraw your consent at any time, in writing or verbally, without giving any reason and without penalty. If you withdraw your consent, your study data will be deleted. Any data processing that has taken place until then will remain lawful. If you withdraw your consent, you may request that your data be deleted. To withdraw your consent, please contact the study secretary.
The Ethics Committee of the Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg provided ethical and professional advice and raised no objections. The data protection commissioner also raised no objections.
DigiHero is mainly funded by in-house resources of the University Medicine Halle (UMH). Under the leadership of the Institute of Medical Epidemiology, Biometry and Informatics, several clinics of the UMH are financially involved in DigiHero. In addition, we have several cooperation partners at other universities and public research organisations in Germany who support us financially in recruiting in other federal states. All cooperation partners can be found here.
For certain sub-projects or research questions, we have received funding from public sponsors (e.g. the Federal Ministry of Health or the Federal Ministry of Education and Research). For the recruitment of participants in Saxony-Anhalt, we received funding from the Ministry of Economy, Science and Digitalisation. All of our funding for specific projects can be found in our scientific publications.
Although DigiHero is a large project through the digital design of the surveys allows us to limit the costs and save public resources.
Our project has never been and will never be funded by commercial sponsors from the free market economy or pharmaceutical industry. Any sponsor or other representative does not influence the research questions our study.
The major scientific project DigiHero is carried out within the framework of the Research Commission of the Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg, which is a public organisation. Every research question is of public interest. The purpose of the study is epidemiological health research. This is not a study commissioned by another organisation. The study is financed exclusively from the executive Institute’s own resources.
The study has been reviewed by the Ethics Committee and no objections have been raised.
In addition, the trial is registered in the German Clinical Trials Register under the number DRKS00025600.