Mini-Sentinel: Common Components SAS® Code v1.2

“Common components” generally refers to software modules that are widely used within a software system to provide commonly needed services (e.g. data/methods) through a defined interface.  In the context of the Mini-Sentinel Distributed Database (MSDD), Common Components SAS® Code provides site-specific values for standard macro variables that are referenced by Mini-Sentinel distributed SAS queries at execution time. More specifically, distributed SAS queries “include” the file ms_common_components.sas to retrieve the definitions for standard macro variables as part of the tasks that set up the program environment.

Many of the standard macro variables contain site-specific information necessary for using the MSDD at a site. For example, the path location of the MSDD, the MSDD table names, the MSDD refresh version available (i.e., ETL #), the MSDD min/max dates of data completeness for the ETL, etc.  

The use of common components by Mini-Sentinel distributed SAS queries  streamlines the distributed query process and minimizes the chances of errors (e.g., executing a query against a non-approved ETL, executing a query using the wrong values for min/max dates of completeness, etc.).

All Data Partner sites participating in Mini-Sentinel must have common components installed. Examples of Mini-Sentinel distributed SAS query types that use common components are Quality Assurance (QA) queries and Cohort Identification and Descriptive Analysis (CIDA) queries.

Note: The SAS code for this tool is provided in a zipped file. By unzipping the file and changing the extensions for each of the programs from “.sas” to “.txt”, the code will become readable for individuals who do not have the SAS software.