Version 03/01/08
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VALENCIA COMMUNITY COLLEGE
Human Research Protection (HRP) Institutional Review Board (IRB)
Investigator Responsibilities
Investigators must comply with all Valencia policies and procedures as well as with all applicable Federal, State, and
local laws regarding the protection of human subjects in research, including, but not limited to the following:
1. Obtaining IRB approval prior to involving any human subjects (including their data) in research studies. Only
the IRB may determine if research is exempt from Federal regulations (investigators may not make the final
determination of exemption).
2. Ensuring that only qualified personnel conduct the study according to the approved protocol, and in
compliance with each individual’s scope of practice.
3. Ensuring the rights and welfare of each research participant, and that the participant's rights and welfare
must take precedence over the goals and requirements of the research.
4. Implementing no changes in the approved protocol or Participant Informed Consent Form without prior IRB
approval, except in an emergency, if necessary to safeguard the well-being of human subjects. Changes
must be submitted to the IRB in advance using the Addendum/Modifications Request Form; emergency
changes must be submitted to the IRB within five (5) working days of occurrence.
5. Ensuring that anyone obtaining informed consent has read the protocol and has sufficient knowledge of all
information provided in the informed consent document.
6. Obtaining legally effective informed consent from human participants or their legally responsible
representative before any research-related screening or intervention commences and using only the
currently approved Participant Informed Consent Form.
7. Providing each participant enrolled in the study a copy of the IRB-approved informed consent document at
the time of the consent, unless the IRB has specifically waived this requirement.
8. Unless specified otherwise, retaining all signed informed consents and other research-related documents
(including but not limited to paperwork submitted to and approved by the IRB) throughout the study and for
an additional three years after the study is completed/closed with the IRB.
9. Promptly reporting any injuries or unanticipated problems to the IRB in writing within five (5) working days of
occurrence or discovery of occurrence using the Adverse Event Form.
10. Reporting progress of approved research to the IRB, as often as and in the manner prescribed by the IRB on
the basis of risks to subjects, but not less than once per year. This includes submitting a Continuing
Review/Termination Form to the IRB prior to expiration and also when the research is completed.
11. Completing at least one of the following investigator training options prior to participant recruitment:
• Leadership Valencia HRP/IRB training workshop;
• NIH Protecting Human Research Participants online training at
http://phrp.nihtraining.com/users/login.php
• NIH IRB Computer-Based Training at
http://ohsr.od.nih.gov/IRBCBT/intro.php
Training must have been completed less than three years prior to the start of participant recruitment and
must continue to be completed at least once every three years; copies of completion certificates should be
submitted to the IRB Chair to be placed in the IRB records as proof of completion. The IRB will consider
accepting alternate HRP training such as IRB courses completed as part of a university’s graduate program,
or the CITI Collaborative IRB Training Initiative online training modules, if requested by the PI or Co-PI. All
investigators should review and be familiar with The Belmont Report: Ethical Principles and Guidelines for
the Protection of Human Subjects of Research (
http://ohrp.osophs.dhhs.gov/humansubjects/guidance/
belmont.htm), and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) regulations for the protection
of human subjects at 45 CFR 46 (http://ohrp.osophs.dhhs.gov/humansubjects/guidance/45cfr46.htm), and