RAND IRB Survey About the Revised Common Rule

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The National Institutes of Health (NIH) sponsored RAND, in cooperation with the Scripps Translational Sciences Institute, to conduct a survey of Institutional Review Boards (IRBs) in 2018. RAND worked with the Office of Human Research Protections (OHRP) to obtain a complete list of IRBs and information about IRB Chairs, information providers, members, and investigators.

The survey was tailored to the role of each respondent. IRB staff and members were asked about IRB organization and staffing, the volume of IRB projects, and IRB resources and procedures. Investigators were asked about their experiences with the protocol submission and review process. Respondents were also asked to provide their opinions about IRB efficiency and effectiveness, and the expected impact of changes to the Common Rule and challenges they face.

This survey may serve as a baseline for tracking changes that take place as the revised Common Rule is implemented. Data collection was completed in May 2018. Results of the study were disseminated to participating IRBs and are available to the public in the report Profile of Institutional Review Board Characteristics Prior to the 2019 Implementation of the Revised Common Rule.

Contact Us

If you have questions about the survey, please contact the RAND project team at:

Email: IRBsurvey@rand.org

Learn More About PRIM&R

Public Responsibility in Medicine and Research (PRIM&R) leadership is aware of the IRB survey. To learn more about PRIM&R, visit https://www.primr.org/.