UK Office of Research Integrity

Menu

ORI Home Page

Quick Links:

OHRP-approved Medical & Nonmedical IRB Roster

Medical IRB Roster

Nonmedical IRB Roster

IRB Meeting Dates

 

ORI appreciates all of
those who volunteer their
time and expertise in
IRB service!

 

IRB Membership

To jump to a topic, click on your choice in the menu below:

  • Administrative Regulation
  • IRB Member Training Resources
  • IRB Rosters
  • Nuts & Bolts of Being an IRB Member
  • IRB Meeting Dates     (new page)
  • Standard Operating Procedures
  • IRB Survival Handbook    		  

     

    Administrative Regulation 7:4 Human Research Subject Protection and Institutional Review Boards

    OHRP-approved Medical & Nonmedical IRB Roster

    Medical IRB Roster

    The UK Medical Institutional Review Boards are registered with the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) in accord with federal regulations, and include information per requirements of the Office of Human Research Protections (OHRP) and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). For an official memorandum in PDF to this effect, click here --> UK Medical IRB Info Memo

    Nonmedical IRB Roster

    Back to Top

    IRB New Member Orientation Module [128KB, 14 pgs.]

    Back to Top

    Nuts & Bolts of Being an IRB Member

    As federally mandated, the IRB is comprised of diverse members with varying backgrounds to promote complete and adequate review of research activities. IRB members learn about a variety of interesting research studies, the ethical issues surrounding human participation, and the mechanisms in place to protect human subjects. If you’ve ever wondered about the process or criteria for serving on the IRB, the following summary provides a snapshot of what is involved.

    Eligibility:
    IRB members are officially appointed by the Executive Vice President for Research. Non-tenure track faculty, or tenure track Associate Professors or higher are eligible for consideration as an IRB member or IRB alternate. Individuals need to be willing to invest the time involved for performing IRB member/alternate responsibilities. For regular members this involves a commitment to regularly attend convened meetings and periodically serve as an Exemption or Expedited reviewer. Candidates must also acquire approval from their department chair or individual to whom they report.

    Training:
    The Office of Research Integrity (ORI) provides initial IRB member orientation and assigns an experienced IRB member to serve as a mentor. Ongoing continuing education is provided through various venues including quarterly IRB in-service sessions or education updates at regular IRB meetings.

    Duration of Term:
    A typical appointment term is three years (and starts Sept. 1).

    Meeting Schedule:
    Normally regular IRB members have one meeting every three weeks. Medical IRB meetings are currently held on either Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday; the schedule can be downloaded from ORI’s IRB Meeting Dates web page or by clicking this link: [PDF]. Nonmedical IRB meetings are currently held on Fridays; the schedule can be downloaded from ORI’s IRB Meeting Dates web page or by clicking this link: [PDF]

    Workload:
    Current members report varying times involved in preparation for the meetings – anywhere from one hour to five hours. The time involved depends on the complexity of the study, existence of regulatory issues, and organization of the materials.

    Alternate IRB Membership:

    Schedule:
    Should a regular member be unavailable for an IRB meeting, an IRB alternate who has equivalent expertise with the regular member may be called upon to review protocol materials and attend the IRB meeting in that regular member’s place. There is no pre-determined schedule for this, and sometimes ORI only finds out a week or so in advance of the meeting that a substitute is needed.

    Workload:
    The time commitment for an alternate varies considerably, depending on the demand for the specific area of expertise and the availability of the IRB member with whom the alternate is paired. It’s possible an alternate could go an extended period without being asked to conduct a review. However, IRB alternates may also serve on a monthly rotation as an Expedited Reviewer and/or Exemption Reviewer. Additional training is provided to enable members to become proficient in these streamlined review mechanisms. The IRB and ORI have Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) describing policies and procedures for IRB reviewers in more detail.

    For more information about volunteering to serve on an IRB, contact Judi Kuhl at (859) 257-9764 or judi.kuhl@uky.edu

    Back to Top