The
Human Research Participant Protection (HRPP) Program is the University of
Oklahoma's established program designed to support its commitment to the protection
of human participants in research. This program incorporates individuals from
the IRB, the University Director of Compliance and the University’s Vice Presidents
of Research. The goals of this program are to ensure human
participant safety, to educate the University’s researching body and to provide
continuous quality improvement of the University’s research activities.
Beginning in 2000, steps
were taken to formally train all investigators and clinical research staff
regarding human research participant protection. As of now, the majority of investigators have completed these
requirements. Effective September 1,
2004, an investigator who has not completed the required training is no longer
permitted to conduct research at the University.
In
addition to the required training, the HRPP program is currently in the process
of creating a quality improvement approach to monitoring research studies. This quality improvement will begin with visits to investigator
research offices. In the future, quality
improvement may branch out and conduct surveys of former and current human
research subjects. As mentioned earlier,
the major goal of the HRPP Program is the protection of human research participants.
By conducting site visits and quality improvement surveys, the HRPP
Program can develop a strategic plan to address areas of concerns through
education.
The Human Research
Participant Protection Program may be contacted by telephone at (405) 271-2045;
by email at irb@ouhsc.edu ; or, by postal
mail at 1000 Stanton L. Young Blvd., LIB 176, Oklahoma City, OK 73117-1213.