ICTS Service Tracker Frequently Asked Questions

As ICTS Core representatives ask questions about ICTS Service Tracker, answers will be posted here. If you have accessed this FAQ and don’t find the answer to your specific question, please email your question to the ICTS (icts@wustl.edu).

1. How do I report to ICTS Admin Core that I cannot log a service because I cannot find the right information in Service Tracker?

If the investigator isn’t in Service Tracker, first verify that the individual is an ICTS member by checking the member list on the ICTS website. If the investigator is an ICTS member but not in Service Tracker or you cannot locate the project, IRB or some other type of information, then send an email to the ICTS Administrative Core at icts@wustl.edu. The evaluation specialist will research the problem and get back to you with a resolution as soon as possible.

2. How do I submit the Service Log?
  • Verify that all services for the time period have been input into Service Tracker – all appropriate details related to the service should be included
  • Select the “View Service Logs” option from the left-hand menu options
  • Select the appropriate start and end dates for the service period
  • Select the “Export” button
  • After processing completes, select the “Download” button
  • When the popup box appears, select “OK” to open the service log in Excel
  • Save the file in an appropriate location and include the acronym of your core and the data in the file name (ex CTRU_19_01.xlsx)
  • Review the contents of the Excel spreadsheet to ensure all data has been included
  • Email the file to icts@wustl.edu or directly to your ICTS Tracking & Evaluation contact
  • By sending the file to this contact, you are indicating that you have:
    • Reviewed and verified the contents of the document
    • Have included all services for the quarter
3. The IRB number I’m looking for is not included in the IRB drop down list.

Be sure the name of the investigator owning the IRB appears in the selection box and then start typing in the IRB number. The matching number should appear in the IRB drop-down box. If not, call or email your Tracking & Evaluation contact and provide the grant award number, investigator name and IRB number.

4. Service Tracker is not saving a new service that has been entered and submitted.

If you have entered and submitted a service, but Service Tracker doesn’t save that service, first check in the list of services to verify that the submitted services is not included in the list. If the service(s) aren’t being saved, then do the following:

  • Clear the cache on your browser
  • Close the browser
  • Reboot your computer
  • Start ONLY Service Tracker as the only active application
  • Try to save a service

If the problem persists, contact the ICTS Admin Core (icts@wustl.edu)

5. A service that is input is being saved but doesn’t appear in the service log.

The service log includes all services having a START date that falls between the Start and End dates you define for the Service Log. Although the initial service for the investigator may have been given in a prior month or even in a prior year, when logging services for ICTS reporting purposes, it’s best to enter a recent date, specifically the date within the reporting quarter that this service was provided. Otherwise, the start and end dates of the Service Log will need to be extended to include the original start date of all services you want included in the log.

6. Report Generation

Due to the amount of data included, some reports require a period of time for generation. The user is allowed to continue working while the report is being generated. A list of current and past reports is produced and status is marked as “In Progress”. The user must select the “Refresh” button to make the report available. If the report is finished processing, the Status will change to “Completed” and the Report will become a live “download” link. Both the current report and past reports are available through the “download” link.

7. “Export Study” Report

The “Export Study” report was programmed to include all studies that were active between the dates input by the user. However, the purpose of this report was to provide study specific information for all studies that had services logged during the period of time input by the user. This would allow the user to match up the “Export Service Request” output with the information about the studies that supported those services. The report has been corrected.

8. Column headers can be used to sort column contents

Click on any column header to initiate a sort. The sort toggles between A-Z and Z-A or lowest number to highest number or vice versa.

9. Active studies vs Inactive studies

The default view on the Study Management page includes only ACTIVE studies. When “today” falls between the study start date and study end date, the study is considered to be “active”, otherwise the study is considered to be “inactive”. To log a service to an inactive study (the study end date has passed), select the “Include Inactive Studies” checkbox on the Study Management header (located to the left of the search box). Inactive studies will then be included in the study list and services can be added to the expired study through the normal process.

10. Export Study

USER OPTIONS includes two additional types of reports, “Export Study” and “Export Service Request”. The “Export Study” option allows the user to export data about all studies for which the core has provided a service during a specified time period.

  • Select the start and end dates for the report
  • Hit the “Export” button. The system will produce the report and prompt you to either open the excel file or save the file.
  • The report includes the following fields for studies that have services during the specified time period:
    • Title of Study
    • Funded Grant/Study (Y/N)
    • Funding Agency
    • Funding Agency Number
    • PI for Study – Last Name
    • PI for Study – First Name
    • PI Specialty Number
    • IRB Approval #
    • IRB Approval Date
    • PI for IRB/IACUC – Last Name
    • PI for IRB/IACUC – First Name
    • AIDS Research (Y/N)
    • Cancer Research (Y/N)
    • Digestive Diseases (Y/N)
    • NIH defined Clinical Trial (Y/N)
    • Neurological Diseases (Y/N)
    • Pediatric Research (Y/N)
11. Export Service Request

This option allows users to export data about any Service TYPE for their core. Unlike the Service Log, this report exports service details input for this service type. Data included in this report will vary, depending upon the Service Type selected. The “Export Study” report can be used to match the study details with the Service Type details by using the “Title of Study” field.

  • Select the Service Type to be included in the report.
  • Select the start and end dates for the report
  • Field Names: This option presents complete header labels, such as “Title of Grant or Study). Use this option if the report will be read in an Excel file.
  • Variable Names: This option presents header labels that are field names, such as “TITLE”. This option is included to support importing the data from excel into another application to produce canned reports.
  • Both: Both types of headers will be included in the report, the first row being the Field Names and the second row of the report being the Variable Names.
  • Select the “Export” button. The system will produce the report and prompt you to either open the excel file or save the file.