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IRB offices might improve their staff and IRB members' training and education if they provide an occasional refresher course on the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Guidelines for the Conduct of Research Involving Human Subjects, also known as the Rules of Review.
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Therapeutic misconception in clinical trials continues to be a significant concern for researchers and IRBs. Studies have shown that misunderstandings persist about the therapeutic value of research interventions among participants and even among research staff.
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IRB directors who think their areas are safe from natural disasters should think again. Some U.S. IRBs learned the hard way that even in non-coastal cities and areas they can find their IRB offices underwater. Or they could experience earthquakes, tornadoes, hurricanes, and fires. And any research institution and IRB is at risk of an epidemic that leaves them short-staffed.
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All IRBs and IRB offices need to set up succession plans to ensure continuity in the event the IRB director or chair leave abruptly.
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Applying community engagement to mental health research can help researchers about design studies that incorporate the priorities of people with mental illness and arrive at the best strategies for working with them.
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As high school students get exposed to more sophisticated science and health programs, some are also having their first encounters with human subjects protection issues.
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Seeing a need for ethics guidance for local groups attempting to conduct community-based research, an organization in Kitchener, Ontario, has created an independent Community Research Ethics Office (CREO).
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Major research institutions can improve their IRBs' efficiency and protocol review quality by making the best use of a resource they have in abundance: expert professors and scientists.
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An IRB dedicated to handling cancer research has shown benefits in efficiency and expertise when such a specialty IRB model is employed.
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Researchers say there need to be more clinical trials examining the safety and effectiveness of pain medications used with children, which are too often administered based on information from adult trials.
