The Children's Health Act mandated the National Children's Study (NCS) in 2000 with one of its purposes being to authorize the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD) to study the environmental influences (including physical, chemical, biological, and psychosocial) on children's health and development. The NCS examines all aspects of the environment including air, water, diet, noise, family dynamics, and genetics, on the growth, development, and health of children across the United States, for a period of 21 years. The purpose of NCS is to improve the health and well-being of children and to contribute to understanding the role of these factors on health and disease.

The research plan for the NCS was developed from 2005 to 2007 in collaboration among the Interagency Coordinating Committee, the NCS Advisory Committee, the NCS Program Office, Westat, the Vanguard Center principal investigators, and federal scientists. The current design of the study, however, uses a separate pilot to assess quality of scientific output, logistics, and operations and a "Main Study" to examine exposure-outcome relationships. The NCS proposed the use of a multilayered cohort approach for the Main Study, which was one of the topics for discussion at the workshop that is the subject of this publication.

In the fall of 2012, NICHD requested that the Committee on National Statistics (CNSTAT) of the NRC and the IOM convene a joint workshop, to be led by CNSTAT. The workshop was to focus on issues related to the overall design (including the framework for implementation) of the NCS. The committee was provided a background paper which it used to select the challenges that were discussed at the workshop. Design of the National Children's Study: A Workshop Summary presents an overview of the workshop held on January 11, 2013. The publication includes summaries of the four sessions of the workshop, a list of participants, and the agenda.

Contents

• THE NATIONAL ACADEMIES
• STEERING COMMITTEE A WORKSHOP ON DESIGN OF THE NATIONAL CHILDREN'S STUDY MAIN STUDY
• COMMITTEE ON NATIONAL STATISTICS 2012–2013
• BOARD ON CHILDREN, YOUTH, AND FAMILIES 2013
• Reviewers
• 1. Introduction
• 2. Environmental Measures
  • BACKGROUND ON CURRENT PLANS
  • QUESTIONS ON ENVIRONMENTAL MEASURES
  • KEY POINTS OF THE DISCUSSION
• 3. Sample Design—Consideration of Multiple Cohorts
  • BACKGROUND ON SAMPLING AND COHORTS
  • QUESTIONS ON ALLOCATION AMONG COHORTS
  • KEY POINTS IN THE DISCUSSIONS ON SAMPLE DESIGN
• 4. Imputation and Estimation
  • QUESTIONS ON IMPUTATION AND ESTIMATION
  • KEY POINTS OF THE DISCUSSION
• 5. Moving Forward
  • QUESTION ABOUT MOVING FORWARD
  • KEY POINTS OF THE DISCUSSION
• References
• Appendixes
  • Appendix A Workshop Agenda
  • Appendix B Registered Participants

Rapporteur: Nancy Kirkendall

This study was supported by Contract/Grant No. HHSN263000019 between the National Academy of Sciences and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Support of the work of the Committee on National Statistics is provided by a consortium of federal agencies through a grant from the National Science Foundation (No. SES-1024012). Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this publication are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the organizations or agencies that provided support for the project.

Suggested citation:

National Research Council and Institute of Medicine. (2013). Design of the National Children's Study: A Workshop Summary. Nancy Kirkendall, Rapporteur. Committee on National Statistics, Division of Behavioral and Social Sciences and Education. Board on Children, Youth, and Families, Institute of Medicine. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press.

NOTICE: The project that is the subject of this report was approved by the Governing Board of the National Research Council, whose members are drawn from the councils of the National Academy of Sciences, the National Academy of Engineering, and the Institute of Medicine. The members of the committee responsible for the report were chosen for their special competences and with regard for appropriate balance.