Configure question dependency rule
The Study Designer application enables study teams to configure CRFs for clinical trial visits with a variety of tools. There are various form field options such as text fields, checkboxes, dropdown menus, date pickers, and more. You can place these fields on the form canvas, arrange them as needed, and make sure they are associated with the corresponding variables.
When maintaining a form, you have the possibility to configure a dependency between questions. The dependency is set up using SAS language to define in what order and based on what condition the questions need to become available on the form in the EDC application for data entry. The purpose of the rule configuration is to streamline the assessment process by omitting irrelevant questions based on the respondent's initial response. It helps ensure that the assessment focuses on gathering only pertinent information.
For example, there is the Chemistry form with questions "Was the sample collected?" and "Date of Sample Collection". By configuring a dependency, you can make the "Date of Sample Collection" question appear on the form during the data entry in EDC only if the first question "Was the sample collected?" has been answered with "Yes".
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In the Study Designer application header, select the CRF DESIGN tab.
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In the toolbar, select the latest draft CRF version marked with the respective unlock symbol
, otherwise, you cannot perform any actions.
Figure 1. Selecting latest draft CRF version
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In the left pane that appears, select the needed form.
Important
Note that by updating a unique form, you introduce changes to all visit forms linked to it and vice versa.
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On the form content page that appears, select the option to design a question dependency rule in one of the following ways:
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Next to the needed question, select More
> Question Dependency
Rule 
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If the rule has already been created, next to the question, select dependency
.
Figure 2. Selecting option to configure question dependency
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In the Expression text box of the Question Dependency Rule page that opens, start designing an expression. You can also select
to add an expression placeholder that you can use for the purpose of organization.
Figure 3. Designing question dependency expression
Tip
You can also use the following entry options when designing an expression:
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Press Shift + @ to automatically prompt functions.
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Press Shift + # to prompt conditions automatically.
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Press Shift + $ to automatically prompt the list of visits, then forms, and then variables to select for the expression.
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From the tree panel, select and drag the necessary variable to use it in the expression configuration.
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Then from the workspace toolbar, select
to save the configured question dependency rule. -
From the same workspace toolbar, switch the Active toggle on if you want the question dependency to be applied in EDC. If the toggle is switched off, the question will be available for data entry without any precondition.
Once activated, the question dependency is configured and applied. You can now continue to maintain forms with available actions.