UW News

February 10, 2011

Webinar, panel discussion on ethics in international research Feb. 16

UW News

The UW Human Subjects Division will hold a webinar and panel discussion with UW researchers titled International Research: Applying Ethical Principles and Research Guidelines in Global Settings from 10 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 16, in the UW Tower Auditorium.

Presenters in the webinar will be David A. Borasky, Jr., institutional review board manager, Office of Research Protection, RTI International; and Nancy Kass, professor of bioethics and public health, Bloomberg School of Public Health, Johns Hopkins University.

The webinar will address:

  • Ensuring that those in international settings who will work with the institutional review board are aware of the relevant federal regulations pursuant to their Federalwide Assurance.
  • Educating institutional review board (IRB) members, administrators, principal investigators, and research staff about the ways in which the cultural context of each international research project should be considered.
  • Evaluating risks and benefits in variable risk environments.
  • Navigating differing power relationships (gender, social class, etc.) that might impact consent authority.
  • Obtaining informed consent in settings with oral rather than written traditions.
  • Developing strategies for community engagement so as to deepen our commitment to the communities in which we are working.
  • Helping ensure equitable distribution of the fruits of the research.

The event will be a brown bag, so participants are free to bring a lunch. Registration is open to the campus online (scroll down and click on “My Enrollment” toward the bottom of the page).

Members of the UW researchers panel are still being identified. Please send recommendations to Sharon Elsayed selsayed@uw.edu.

The webinar will be conducted by the Boston-based firm Public Responsibility in Medicine and Research, whose mission is to “advance the highest ethical standards in the conduct of biomedical, social science, behavioral, and educational research,” accomplished through “education, membership services, professional certification, and public policy initiatives.”