October 27-30: Simplifying Informed Consent – OHRP Virtual Workshop at the NIH Office of Extramural Research Fall Regional Seminar

The NIH Office of Extramural Research (OER) will host its semi-annual regional seminar virtually this fall from October 27-30. Registration is required, and the event is free.

Mark your calendars to join OHRP on Friday, October 30, 1:00-2:45pm EDT for an extended session about informed consent, including practical tips on integrating the revised Common Rule requirements into your consenting processes.

And don’t miss a special Q&A with OHRP session on Tuesday, October 27, 3:00-4:00pm. Once registered for the regional seminar, find the link to attend the Q&A session under the NIH Human Subjects, Clinical Trials, and Inclusion Booth Events.

Registration and more information as is it available at: nihvirtualseminar2020.vfairs.com/

OHRP Town Hall Meeting to Discuss NPRM


The Office for Human Research Protections (OHRP) has announced a public Town Hall Meeting to be held October 20, 2015, to respond to questions related to the Federal Policy for the Protection of Human Subjects Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) published on September 8, 2015.

The goal of the NPRM is to modernize, strengthen, and make more effective the Federal Policy for the Protection of Human Subjects that was promulgated as a Common Rule in 1991. The NPRM seeks comments on proposals to better protect human subjects involved in research, while facilitating valuable research and reducing burden, delay, and ambiguity for investigators.

The purpose of the Town Hall Meeting (agenda) is for OHRP, HHS agencies, and other Common Rule departments and agencies to provide responses to questions from the public about the NPRM in order to clarify the NPRM proposals and better inform public comment on the NPRM. The public will be able to ask questions during the Town Hall Meeting, and to submit questions before the meeting. Watch via webinar.

Public Town Hall Meeting 
October 20, 2015, 9 am to 5 pm
Hubert H. Humphrey Building, Great Hall
200 Independence Ave SW
Washington, DC 20201

This PDF document (#2015-25564) contains details about the format of the public Town Hall Meeting and how to register or submit questions prior to the meeting.

Important deadlines:

  • While there is no registration fee, individuals planning to attend the Town Hall in person must register by 5:00 pm October 13, 2015. Registration will be accepted on a first-come, first-served basis and may be completed by sending an email to OHRP@hhs.gov, with the subject line “Registration for OHRP Town Hall Meeting.”
  • The deadline for submission of questions about the NPRM prior to the Town Hall Meeting must be received no later than 5:00 pm October 13, 2015.
  • Details on the NPRM are at the OHRP website. To be assured consideration, comments on the NPRM must be received no later than the extended deadline of January 6, 2016.

 

OHRP Offers Webinars on Proposed Revisions to the Common Rule


The Office for Human Research Protections (OHRP) has posted a series of six webinars explaining the recent Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) regarding revisions to the Common Rule (the federal policy for human subjects protection). The presentations by policy experts can be viewed anytime; they cover the following topics:

  • Overview of the NPRM
  • Exclusions and exemptions
  • Informed consent
  • IRB review and operations
  • Research with biospecimens
  • Secondary research use of data

For more information on the NPRM, visit the OHRP website. The deadline for comments on the proposed revision has been extended to January 6, 2016.


2015 International Compilation of Human Research Standards Released


The 2015 edition of the International Compilation of Human Research Standards is now available. Compiled by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Service’s Office for Human Research Protections, the document indexes more than 1,000 laws, regulations, and guidelines governing human subjects research in over 100 countries.

The compilation includes direct links to many of the laws, regulations, and guidelines, and serves as a resource for researchers, institutional review boards (IRBs), research sponsors, and others involved in human subjects research worldwide.

The 2015 edition includes hundreds of updates, including the addition of six new countries (Ghana, Guinea, Liberia, Malaysia, Saudi Arabia, and Sierra Leone).

Access the 2015 compilation here

Content is organized in the following topics:
 1. General
 2. Drugs and Devices
 3. Research Injury
 4. Privacy/Data Protection
 5. Human Biological Materials
 6. Genetic
 7. Embryos, Stem Cells, and Cloning

Office for Human Research Protections Releases Draft Guidance on Disclosing Risks in Standard-of-Care Research


On October 20, 2014 the Office for Human Research Protections (OHRP) released a draft guidance on how to apply the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) regulations on protecting human subjects (45 CFR Part 46) who participate in research studies intended to evaluate risks of treatments or procedures commonly used by healthcare professionals and recognized as “standard of care.” In standard-of-care research (or comparative effectiveness research), participants are randomized to receive one of two (or more) treatments that are accepted by medical experts as appropriate treatments for a given disease or condition.

Because treatments assigned to some participants might be different than the treatments they would have been assigned if they were not participating in the study, and the risks associated with one treatment might be different from the risks associated with another treatment, the OHRP recommends that these risks be fully described to potential participants as a part of the informed consent process.

Click here for the full draft guidance: Draft Guidance on Disclosing Reasonably Foreseeable Risks in Research Evaluating Standards of Care

The Institute of Medicine is planning a two-day public workshop in December to discuss human subjects protections in standard-of-care research. Click here for more information.​