Volume 42 | Number 4 | August 2007

Abstract List

Jan Blustein M.D.,Ph.D., Marsha Regenstein, Bruce Siegel, John Billings


Objective

To identify strategies that facilitate readiness for local Institutional Review Board (IRB) review, in multicenter studies.


Study Setting

Eleven acute care hospitals, as they applied to participate in a foundationā€sponsored quality improvement collaborative.


Study Design

Case series.


Data Collection/Extraction

Participant observation, supplemented with review of written and oral communications.


Principal Findings

Applicant hospitals responded positively to efforts to engage them in early planning for the IRB review process. Strategies that were particularly effective were the provisions of application templates, a modular approach to study description, and reliance on conference calls to collectively engage prospective investigators, local IRB members, and the evaluation/national program office teams. Together, these strategies allowed early identification of problems, clarification of intent, and relatively timely completion of the local IRB review process, once hospitals were selected to participate in the learning collaborative.


Conclusions

Engaging potential collaborators in planning for IRB review may help expedite and facilitate review, without compromising the fairness of the grantā€making process or the integrity of human subjects protection.