Clinical Onboarding Overview

MPOG Clinical Onboarding

Overview

Page 2

Last Updated: October 7, 2026

Table of Contents

Clinical Onboarding Overview ....................................................................................................................... 3

Pre-Onboarding Requirements ................................................................................................................. 3

Clinical Onboarding Details ....................................................................................................................... 3

Clinical Onboarding Steps ..................................................................................................................... 4

Clinical Onboarding Process ...................................................................................................................... 5

Clinical Onboarding Roadmap ................................................................................................................... 6

Glossary ......................................................................................................................................................... 7

Page 3

Last Updated: October 7, 2026

Clinical Onboarding Overview

During the Clinical Onboarding process, the MPOG Clinical Informacs Specialist (CIS) will work with your

site’s onboarding team to review and validate your data. The CIS will guide the onboarding team through

the steps necessary to successfully submit clean, quality data to MPOG Producon.

The CIS is noﬁed when your site completes Technical Onboarding and will contact your site’s

onboarding team to begin scheduling Clinical Onboarding meengs.

Pre-Onboarding Requirements

Prior to Clinical Onboarding, the following steps and documents MUST be completed.

• Complete Steps 1–5 on the Steps to Join page.

• Submit signed Regulatory and Security Documents.

o Business Associate Agreement (BAA)

o Data Use Agreement (DUA)

o The remaining documents must be completed prior to receiving approval to submit data

to MPOG Producon.

 Instuonal IRB

 MPOG Bylaws

 MPOG Service Agreement

• Complete Technical Onboarding with MPOG Technical Team.

Clinical Onboarding Details

The Clinical Onboarding Process includes several rounds of data review and validaon. User guides for

the tools used during this process are available on our website. Your CIS will guide your site’s onboarding

team through each step and explain how to use the tools.

The MPOG Clinical Onboarding Roadmap outlines each onboarding step and its esmated meline.

These melines are esmates and may vary based on the availability of your site’s onboarding team,

idenﬁed data issues, or other delays.

Epic sites typically complete onboarding within 6–12 months, while non-Epic sites typically complete

onboarding within 18–24 months.

Your CIS will update the roadmap to reﬂect your site’s current onboarding stage.

Your CIS will schedule meengs based on the preferences of your site’s onboarding team, whether on a

recurring or ad hoc basis. The CIS will keep the onboarding team informed of next steps and help

troubleshoot data issues throughout the process.

Page 4

Last Updated: October 7, 2026

Clinical Onboarding Steps

The steps below outline what to expect during clinical onboarding. Unless otherwise noted, your site’s

onboarding team will complete each step with guidance from your MPOG CIS. The Clinical Onboarding

Process secon displays the same informaon in a diagram format.

1. Complete Variable Mapping for one month of data.

2. Complete Locaon Mapping.

3. Complete Case Validaon for at least ﬁve cases from the month of data.

4. Complete the Data Diagnoscs Aestaon.

5. Review the available guidance and become familiar with the following MPOG tools:

a. Case Viewer

b. Import Manager Assistant

c. Content Synchronizaon

d. Concept Browser

6. Aer MPOG approves the transfer, your CIS will nofy your site and schedule a meeng. During

the meeng, your site will complete PHI Scrub. Your site will then transfer one month of data to

the MPOG Test environment.

7. The MPOG Coordinang Center will review your data and provide a summary of

recommendaons and idenﬁed data issues.

8. Complete the MPOG Coordinang Center’s recommendaons and resolve idenﬁed data issues.

9. Load three addional months of data, for a total of four months.

10. For each addional month, complete Variable Mapping, Locaon Mapping, Case Validaon

(minimum of 5 per month), and the Data Diagnoscs Aestaon.

11. Aer MPOG approves the transfer, your CIS will nofy your site and schedule a meeng. During

the meeng, your site will complete PHI scrub. Your site will then transfer four months of data to

the MPOG Test environment.

12. The MPOG Coordinang Center and MPOG Directors will review the data and provide a

summary of recommendaons and idenﬁed data issues.

13. Complete the MPOG Coordinang Center’s recommendaons and resolve idenﬁed data issues.

Addional test upload note: Based on the results of the second Test upload, the MPOG

Coordinang Center may require an addional upload to the Test environment aer

idenﬁed issues are resolved.

14. Connue loading data through the most recently available complete month. For each addional

month, complete Variable Mapping, Locaon Mapping, Case Validaon, and the Data

Diagnoscs Aestaon.

15. Aer MPOG gives ﬁnal approval, your CIS will nofy your site and schedule a meeng to

complete the PHI Scrub and then Transfer your data to MPOG Producon.

16. Your site’s onboarding team will turn on automaon for the File Extract, Import, and Consume

processes.

17. Follow the MPOG Maintenance Schedule and submit data monthly to remain an Acve MPOG

Site.

Page 5

Last Updated: October 7, 2026

Clinical Onboarding Process

Onboarding starts with a linear setup sequence: extract a ﬁrst month of data, complete variable mapping, review cases, and aest diagnoscs before validaon. From there the process becomes

a repeang cycle of mapping updates, data review, and cleaning, looping unl each month of data passes validaon. It includes two transfers to the MPOG Test Environment. The cycle repeats

across addional months unl the backlog is complete and data is handed oﬀ for ongoing maintenance.

Page 6

Last Updated: October 7, 2026

Clinical Onboarding Roadmap

This roadmap tracks your site’s progress through onboarding. Your MPOG CIS updates the roadmap and shares it with

your site’s onboarding team. It tracks required legal agreements and clinical onboarding steps.

Page 7

Last Updated: October 7, 2026

Glossary

Ter m

Deﬁnion

BAA

Business Associate Agreement. A required agreement addressing the handling of protected

health informaon.

Case Validaon

A review of individual cases that compares local MPOG data with electronic health record

documentaon to conﬁrm accuracy and idenfy discrepancies.

Case Viewer

An MPOG tool that displays individual case data in a standardized format for review, regardless

of the site’s electronic health record system.

Consume Process

The process of parsing imported ﬁles into tabular data, loading the data into staging tables,

and generang variable-usage informaon for mapping.

Content

Synchronizaon

An MPOG tool that applies current MPOG content, including concepts, diagnoscs, PHI

terminology, lab variables, enumeraons, and locaon tags, to the site’s local database.

Data Diagnoscs

An MPOG tool that uses visualizaons and thresholds to help site teams idenfy systemac

extracon, transformaon, and mapping issues before data submission.

DUA

Data Use Agreement. A required agreement that deﬁnes permied uses and protecons for

shared data.

Epic site

A parcipang site that uses the Epic electronic health record system.

Import Manager

Assistant

An MPOG tool that displays ﬁle-processing status and errors across the Import, Consume, and

Handoﬀ stages to support invesgaon and troubleshoong.

Import Process

The process of moving extracted ﬁles from the ﬁle share into the site’s local Import Manager

database.

Instuonal IRB

The site’s Instuonal Review Board documentaon related to oversight of research involving

people or their data.

Locaon Mapping

The process of organizing a site’s facilies and procedure rooms into a hierarchy so MPOG

tools can ﬁlter and group data by anesthezing locaon.

MPOG

Mulcenter Perioperave Outcomes Group.

MPOG CIS

Clinical Informacs Specialist. The MPOG contact who guides the site through clinical

onboarding, data review, and validaon.

MPOG Producon

The live MPOG environment used for approved ongoing data submissions.

MPOG Test

environment

The nonproducon MPOG environment used to review and validate site data before

producon submission.

Non-Epic site

A parcipang site that uses an electronic health record system other than Epic.

PHI

Protected health informaon.

PHI Scrub

A site-run process that removes paent and staﬀ idenﬁers before each data transfer. Cases

that have not completed PHI Scrub cannot be transferred to MPOG Central.

QI onboarding

Quality improvement onboarding, which prepares a site to parcipate in MPOG quality

improvement acvies. This is led by the MPOG Quality Improvement Specialist.

Transfer to MPOG

Central

Exporng PHI-scrubbed cases from a site’s local MPOG database to MPOG Central. A Test

transfer is required before the ﬁrst Producon transfer.

Variable Mapping

The process of mapping a site’s electronic health record variables to standardized MPOG

concepts so common data elements can be used for research and quality improvement.