The Office of Research Ethics has added a new page to the BREB site. The page answers common questions about research ethics for residents in the Faculty of Medicine at UBC who are conducting behavioural projects.
Please go to: https://ethics.research.ubc.ca/behavioural-research-ethics/guidance-medical-residents-doing-behavioural-research.
Effective February 14, 2023, the Behavioural Research Ethics Board (BREB) has reduced its COVID safety requirements for conducting in-person research. While continuing to be concerned for the safety of research participants, the BREB will no longer require researchers to submit Safe Research Plans for in-person research, except in the following circumstances:
Consultations in advance of submitting an ethics application are still required for all students who are planning to travel outside Canada.
See full details at https://ethics.research.ubc.ca/behavioural-research-ethics/behavioural-research-covid-19-guidance.
If you have questions, please contact lisa.shearer@ubc.ca (Okanagan) | leah.meanwell@ubc.ca (Vancouver)
The Panel on Research Ethics (PRE) has released the TCPS 2022 version. Changes include:
Updates to BREB and CREB guidance and web links will be made as soon as possible and as needed. In the meantime, please see:
NEW TCPS 2: https://ethics.gc.ca/eng/policy-politique_tcps2-eptc2_2022.html
Summary of changes: https://ethics.gc.ca/eng/policy-politique_tcps2-eptc2_2022_changes-modifications.html
Beginning 2023, the CREB will focus on re-review of applications that were approved prior to 2014. An ethics re-review to ensure the study meets current ethical requirements, will be undertaken and communicated individually with each PI and primary contact on the study.
As per TCPS 2 (2018) Article 6.14 “The REB shall make the final determination as to the nature and frequency of continuing research ethics review in accordance with a proportionate approach to research ethics review.” “Continuing research ethics review should be understood as a collective responsibility to be carried out with a common interest in maintaining the highest ethical standards: REBs make the final decision about the nature and frequency of continuing ethics review.”
Researchers will be requested to submit a new application making reference to the originally submitted study.
Please note UBC CREB may also request re-review of any study if deemed necessary
UBC CREB is also requiring the re-review of registries (data bank) or biobanks 5 years and older in order to align with our new Protocol and consent form requirements as per here
The Research Ethics offices (Behavioural and Clinical) will be open through December 23rd and will then be closed until Tuesday, January 3rd. There will be limited staff December 22nd and 23rd, so please anticipate some delays in response times.
We wish you an auspicious start to 2023!
The BREB was recently asked to advise on how researchers could minimize the occurrence of participants who falsify their identities in order to qualify for research. See the attached for a discussion of the issue and for suggested approaches.
Questions about Ethics? We're available by phone or you can book a Zoom consultation by sending us an email.
If your questions relate to protocols for COVID-19 and international research, please contact Maria Valente at maria.valente@ubc.ca.
If your questions relate to Indigenous research, please contact Wendy Bond at wendy.bond@ubc.ca.
For all other queries and requests, please send an email to leah.meanwell@ubc.ca. Include a brief description of the topic, along with your Ethics ID number (e.g. H22-01234 - if you have an application in progress). If you would prefer to meet in person, please mention in your email. Leah will forward your request to the most appropriate person for follow up.
Also note, we have discontinued our drop-in sessions at Research Commons/Koerner Library due to low demand.
In response to community-expressed needs, the Making Research Accessible initiative (MRAi) – a partnership between the UBC Learning Exchange and Library in collaboration with others – has developed the Downtown Eastside Research Access Portal (DTES RAP). The RAP is designed to provide information about research that is relevant to/about Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside. As well as linking to research published since 2010, the DTES RAP includes researchers’ contact information and information about ongoing and past research projects in the DTES.
What types of research are the DTES RAP looking to include?
Please contact mrai.info@ubc.ca with any questions about the portal.
Research Ethics BC (REBC)* has contracted an external consultant to evaluate the harmonized research ethics review models being used in BC. If you have submitted a multi-jurisdictional study for ethics review in BC, they would like to hear from you.
The survey will take between 15-30 minutes to complete.
Completion is requested by Saturday September 17th.
Survey link: https://survey.ca1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_0SWmy8LEm5fBqtw?jfefe=new
For more information or if you have any questions, please contact Alecia Kallos at Three Hive Consulting: alecia@threehive.ca or 604-360-4406.
For information about REBC: https://www.bcahsn.ca/our-units/research-ethics-bc.