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Mrs Carol Barkle

Research ethics officer (uems).

  [email protected]

  Knowledge Spa 

University of Exeter Medical School, Knowledge Spa, Royal Cornwall Hospital, Truro, TR1 3HD

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Carol is the Research Ethics Officer for the Medical School. She supports the University of Exeter Medical School  & Health and Care Professions Research Ethics Committee (UEMS&HCP REC) in processing ethics proposals that are not otherwise reviewed by the Health Research Authority of the National Health Service. reviews applications primarily from the University of Exeter Medical School (Clinical and Biomedical Sciences, Health and Community Sciences and Public Health) ,Department of Health and Care Professions (including the Academy of Nursing, Medical Imaging and Clinical Pharmacy) and Public Health and Sports Sciences (European Centre for Environment and Human Health).Carol is based in Cornwall and  works closely with Research Ethics Governance colleagues to support health research across all campuses and both counties.

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Bursaries of up to £500  are available to assist PhD students and early career stage researchers in the field of fungal biology. 

Research ethics

Research in Biosciences at the Streatham Campus is diverse and covers a range of topics from fungal biology, biochemistry, cell biology and development, microbiology, and evolutionary biology. All research has the potential to raise ethical issues, which must be given due consideration during the research process.

What are research ethics?

Research ethics refers to the application of moral principles that inform the research process, from planning through implementation to completion and publication of results. Researchers are responsible for the care and welfare of animals used in their research, and, in human research, should respect the rights and dignity of participants. The gain in knowledge from research must be balanced against any potential adverse consequences for the individual animals, human participants and populations involved, and the wider ecosystem and/or society. However, the huge diversity of topics and questions associated with human and animal research can often make judgements about the ethics of research difficult. To help biosciences researchers make clearer assessments of the ethical implications of their work requires a set of principles, established by codes of conduct and legislation.

Our policies

All our research work is guided by the  University's Ethics Policy (pdf) and the Code of Good Conduct in Research , informed by the Universities UK Concordat to Support Research Integrity .

More specifically, research involving human participants should follow guidelines such as those drawn up by the British Psychology Society (BPS) (pdf)  and the E conomic and Social Research Council (ESRC) (pdf) .

Research on animals should follow the Association for the Study of Animal Behaviour (ASAB) guidelines (pdf)  and Home Office legislation , with consideration of the 3Rs the key guiding principle.

Researchers are expected to give consideration to the environmental, social, political, religious or economic consequences of any research undertaken as well as legal or professional obligations and any potential safety and reputational risks to participants, researchers, the Department or University.

Individual researchers are responsible for due consideration of the ethical implications of their research and, in order to maintain uniformly high ethical standards and provide an independent view, all research projects that do not fall under the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986 (which are assessed by the University Animal Welfare and Ethical Review Board) and do not require external review (by e.g. NHS ethics committees), are assessed by the Exeter Biosciences Ethics Committee. The committee provides regular, independent assessment of the ethics of research projects and is comprised of members drawn from the range of research themes within Biosciences and from different research job families (academic staff, postdoctoral researchers, postgraduate researchers and technicians).

Getting ethical approval for your research

Refer to this  Ethics flow chart to help you decide which committee to submit an application to.

Ethical approval is required before starting research. Access the e-ethics system for approval of research here.

For guidance, refer to the following documents:

• ' Quick Guide to Ethics Applications '
• e-Ethics User Guide

For training in ethics please complete the Research Integrity module in Learnupon .

Further information specific to the Biosciences ethics committee and advice for filling in your application can be found on the Biosciences Ethics Sharepoint.

Please contact the Chair of the Exeter Biosciences Ethics Committee, Dr Bryony Williams if you have any queries about ethical approval.

Form templates for applications that involve human participants

Please upload these adapted forms with your application:

UoE Consent Form Template

UoE Consent Form template (HTA adapted version)   Please use this adapted consent form template if your research involves the collection of human samples (blood, tissue etc) from participants.

UoE Participant Information Sheet Template

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Research, Training and Skills

It is important that you undertake appropriate research training to help you complete your thesis successfully and in good time. The Business School and Doctoral College are fully committed to research training that is relevant, useful and which contributes to positive outcomes for its students, not least in enhancing your post-thesis employability.

Research Training Needs Analysis

As a research student in the Business School at Exeter you have access to a range of training and development opportunities to help you get the best out of your research and develop professionally. Each new student should discuss and agree their training needs with their supervisor, complete a   training needs analysis  form online. Once completed, students must download a copy of the form and upload a copy of their form to   MyPGR . 

Existing students, and their supervisors, should keep a close eye on new requirements as they arise and review their   Training Needs Analysis   form each year, uploading the revised form to MyPGR annually.  Please note that the training needs analysis is intended as a tool for you to log and track your training needs, and how you are addressing these. It is not a mechanism to request training from the College or University and the logging of a particular training need does not mean that this requirement can necessarily be met in the College or the University. The Training Needs Analysis form will be sent to you as part of your induction and is   available through this link .

Training Needs Analysis Guidance

We have written a  PGR Training Needs Analysis Guidance 2021/2   which confirms the School's expectations for your training, but also gives details about how to complete a skills analysis. There are also suggestions about training opportunities within the School and wider University. 

Auditing Modules

A range of research methods training is also available through the auditing of masters level modules offered within the College.  These are likely to be especially useful as a source of discipline-related training. Elements from these should be selected as appropriate to complement and complete the student’s training.  Attendance on modules is at the discretion of the module tutor concerned.  Following consultation with their supervisors, students should contact module tutors to arrange attendance. If you have permission from the module convenor to audit a module and would like it to appear on your transcript, you will need to email the   PGR Support Office   who can add you to the module. Examination for masters level modules is not compulsory for progression as part of the research degree, although may be requested in exceptional circumstances by your supervisor.

Many PGR students audit modules as part of their ongoing research training, but we recommend that students do not audit more than 3 modules each academic year, as the time commitment for modules can take the focus from the research preparation for your thesis. 

Researcher Development Programme

The Researcher Development Team within the Doctoral College provides   Researcher Development programmes , funded initiatives, interdisciplinary events, resources and career support provide opportunities to enhance your research and employability, to meet others and become part of our vibrant research community. They offer workshops, webinars, online resources, career guidance and funding to help you design your own professional development programme. The programmes aim to enhance the personal and professional skills that are associated with undertaking research projects. The training offered through the Researcher Development Programme cover a lot of different topics such as understanding the Doctoral process, project-management, writing a thesis and presenting a conference paper.  

There are training events specific to both Exeter campus and Cornwall, so you will be able to find courses which are relevant for you wherever you are based. There are also a lot of modules and training programmes which are available online for our distance based students.

College training events and seminars

During the academic year, the College will organise training events and seminars that complement your research and future career planning. PGRs are included in the staff emails with ongoing training events, seminars and departmental opportunities throughout the year.

Attendance and participation at departmental research seminars is another important element of training for all PhD students. Please see the College’s   Events   webpage for further details.   

Ethics Approval

Research conducted by staff and students in the University must abide by good ethical standards that respect the integrity and well-being of those involved in it. Please also see the  University ethics policies and guidance  for further information.

Projects requiring ethical review typically involve interviews, questionnaires or observation of people. 

Once you have defined a project to a reasonable extent, look at it from an ethical standpoint and see if any of its activities, methods or processes has ethical implications. Projects requiring ethical review typically involve interviews, questionnaires or observation of people. If you are in any doubt, or just wish to explore problems or possibilities, contact your discipline Director of Research, or your supervisor. You may then also wish to talk with the Business School Ethics Officer.  

You   must   submit an e-Ethics application   prior to commencing your research , via the Business School Ethics site. You should familiarise yourself with the content of these pages before you embark on your data collection. 

The information on the application will be considered by the College’s Ethics Committee, which may suggest changes. If necessary, there can be a further discussion with your discipline Director of Research or supervisor, to get the fine-tuning right. Once the content of the request has been agreed, the College Ethics Officer will then also issue you with a Certificate, which is formal confirmation of approval from the College and from the University.

UEBS PGR Ethics Induction

As part of the PGR Induction in September 2021, there will be an ethics induction session, which will be recorded and made available though this Handbook for students who were unable to attend in person, or who started later in the year. The video link will be uploaded to this page in early October 2021. 

Research Undertaken Outside the UK

If you are planning to undertake research outside the UK (interviews, researching archives etc.), you are advised to take a letter of introduction stating who you are, your programme, discipline, and research topic. Such ID is often required by institutions in other countries where a student ID card is unacceptable.  This information is contained in a letter from the Ethics Committee, please check with your supervisors if you need Ethics Committee approval for your research (e.g. interviewing).   

If you are sure there are no ethical implications in your visit, then you may ask for a letter from the PGR Support team. You can photocopy multiple copies for the institutions you wish to visit. 

Full information about the University & Business School's ethics procedures and policies can be found on the   Business School Ethics SharePoint site

Insurance and Health & Safety

All postgraduate students travelling abroad on University business (such as research fieldwork) are covered by the University’s Insurance Policy   provided that you inform us about your travel plans . This insurance cover is paid for by the University. All international travel (even if to your home country) should be registered on the   International Travel Form . International travel is considered as travel anywhere outside England, Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland. You must complete the online  International Travel Form  at least two weeks before you travel, as it may be necessary to assess the insurance available to students visiting politically unstable regions.

The insurance policy includes a 24 hour helpline and assistance services in the event that a student requires advice or assistance whilst abroad. See the   Insurance cover and claims   section of the Finance Services pages for more information. The travel insurance policy includes cover for travel to potentially dangerous parts of the world. However there will be an extra charge for travel to some high risk countries eg Iraq and Afghanistan (which will be paid by the College). This must not be taken to mean that the University condones the undertaking of unnecessary risks. Travellers should ensure that there is an up-to-date assessment of any health and safety risks that their trip may expose them to before commencing their travel. If, after undertaking a risk assessment, any unacceptably high risks are identified, further advice should obtained from  Health and Safety Office, as this does not necessarily mean that the travel cannot take place. The Insurance Office, in some instances, may also seek confirmation from a College Manager that the College has given permission for the trip to take place.

Similarly, if your travel falls into the high risk category e.g. field work, field trip involving students or travel to an extreme risk country then the leader of the trip is responsible for ensuring that a   Fieldwork/Risk Assessment form   is completed. In order to help you understand the risks in the country you are visiting please refer to the   ACE website   (access code is 7872). A definition of   high risk travel   may be helpful in completing the risk assessment part of the form.

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Research ethics committees: A forum where scientists, editors, and policymakers can cooperate during pandemics

Francesco chirico.

1 Post-graduate School of Occupational Health, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, Rome, Italy

2 Centro Sanitario Polifunzionale di Milano, Health Service Department, Italian State Police, Ministry of the Interior, Milan, Italy

Katrina A. Bramstedt

3 Department of Medicine, Khalifa University College of Medicine and Health Sciences, Abu Dhabi, UAE

During public health pandemics such as COVID-19, cooperative behaviors among scientists, journal editors, policy makers and research ethics committees, are essential to promote scientific integrity and societal trust in translational research and resultant public health decisions. This cooperation is possible by expanding the current way of working to include stakeholders beyond the research team via community events and special communication channels sponsored by research ethics committees. Research ethics committees with wider communication channels, increased transparency, and enhanced knowledge exchange have the potential to improve research design, performance, dissemination, and ultimately public benefit.

During the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, a fast-track peer review of COVID-19 papers submitted to journals has replaced the traditional, more time-consuming peer review process, causing concern among stakeholders in scholarly publishing. 1 However, “quick publishing” 2 is a pandemic-related phenomenon that may produce low-quality literature and, subsequently, more retractions. 3 Sometimes, even retracted articles continue to be repeatedly cited by sloppy scholars. Additionally, predatory journals and researchers can leverage the pandemic as a tool to propel their own goals. 4 Predatory journals were a troublesome presence long-before the emergence of COVID-19; however, the fast pace and competitive pandemic research setting is a ripe arena making researchers an easy target by these unscrupulous journals that provide little or no peer review, rapid publishing, and open access. 5 COVID-19 is one of the biggest public health challenges the world has confronted, and rapid, high-quality research plays a key role in the fight against the virus. Identifying categories of people that should be prioritized for COVID-19 vaccination (including boosters), as well as lockdown and physical distancing policies, are examples of how decision-making relies on scientific findings. 6 , 7 When scientists and policymakers have different attitudes and goals, this can hamper collaboration; 8 however, by working together during pandemics such as COVID-19, scientific findings can be translated into beneficial policies and procedures for the health of society.

Worldwide, the role of research ethics committees (also known as institutional review boards) has been to review and approve human research proposals to ensure novel research questions, robust study design, and the protection of research participant safety and welfare. Committee structure is generally a mix of lay volunteers and professional scientists, sometimes with subspecialty committees (e.g. social science, medical). Ideally, research ethics committees should have a multidisciplinary membership that reaches beyond the science, and also includes ethicists and patients concerned with the contextual aspects of research that impact methodology, data privacy, and the application of the research across populations. 9 The Chair at the helm of these committees is expected to guide the review process to ensure timely and constructive feedback to researchers so that their research protocols are optimized before receiving approval for study launch.

To do their job effectively, research ethics committees need to understand the research they are reviewing. Part of achieving this is by way of assigning protocol reviews to topic specialists within the committee, as well as the use of external expert reviewers as needed. Additionally, the committees can receive input from the Principal Investigator directly, answering queries and providing clarifications. We propose that the input mechanism to research ethics committees be widened for additional purposes related to understanding research proposals, as well as stakeholder opinions, and community impact. If publishers interface with research ethics committees, they can potentially develop better understandings of jurisdictional approval/exemption requirements, thereby avoiding publication delays due to incorrect assumptions or lack of awareness. If policy makers interface with research ethics committees, they can potentially develop an understanding of research risks and benefits across communities—something that is especially important if their community is facing a public health threat and they are vulnerable (e.g. socioeconomically disadvantaged, special cultural values).

While there is a time for closed [private] sessions, research ethics committees should be open to dialog with all research stakeholders (not only scientists) to gain a fuller understanding of research applications and implications, risks and benefits, and strategies for risk mitigation, as well as optimized delivery of the research review process so as to ensure a timely study launch (reducing study delays). This view is consistent with that of the World Health Organization which states, “For a [committee] decision to be ethically legitimate, it must be made in an open and inclusive process that takes into account the views of all stakeholders. Thus, research ethics committees should be encouraged to include individuals from diverse professional and social backgrounds and, where appropriate, to solicit input proactively from the community.” 9

Johns Hopkins Medicine Institutional Review Board (a research ethics committee in USA) provides an annual Community Day during which the public is invited to dialog with them about research ethics, research protections, and the research review process. 10 Events like these are important because research ethics committees and research participants (patients/community members) can have differing views regarding priorities. 11 Also, community-based participatory research will benefit from direct interaction with research ethics committees because research has shown that often these committees are not prepared for this type of research with these key stakeholders who are in fact helping shape the research question, recruit participants, collect study data, and disseminate the study results back to their community. 12 Committee events such as these could also provide a mechanism for transparent mediation of power struggles between research stakeholders. Ideally, these external research ethics committee events should be more frequent than annual, especially during public health crises when the public is participating in vaccine and treatment clinical trials, and the pharmaceutical industry has a duality of priorities (i.e. producing safe and effective product and making profit for shareholders). Community Days and other stakeholder events can be held in virtual formats using teleconferencing technology when public health crises demand physical distancing.

In Iran, three main working groups have been set up to manage COVID-19 research, including (1) research on epidemiology and public health, (2) clinical research, and (3) basic science and virology research. 13 These committees are having an additional role in research monitoring, not just protocol review. Monitoring is usually a function performed by the research sponsor, but in this instance, the committees are potentially having additional impact in research quality by checking the conduct of research themselves. In the context of COVID-19 and vaccine research, decisions to pause or abort studies or pause distribution of emergency-authorized vaccines can have profound research and clinical implications. 14

Research ethics committees and associated data safety monitoring boards are the canaries in the mines who should be audible voices not bullied by sponsors or governments. Their advocacy for science and public safety as well as research integrity means viewing them in the research co-working space, as well as the regulatory/governance space. This lens shift allows for a change in tone in the research workplace, creating a culture which is more conducive to stakeholder collaboration and shared decision-making (rather than bullying). While various governance boards will ultimately render decisions, a shared decision-making approach from the lens of collaboration and co-working potentially fosters data sharing and dialog for public health benefit.

In situations of alleged research misconduct, research ethics committees should collaborate with journal editors and publishers to ensure that the investigative process is not delayed. Timely evidence sharing in tandem with fair and expert investigations will promote prompt retraction of research which has ethical and/or scientific misconduct, limiting its use and reuse. During these situations, it is vital that research ethics committee members are free from external pressures and are able to dialog without intimidation or conflict from research stakeholders. In the end, research outputs should be trusted scientific evidence for use by government policymakers, and health officers in their pursuit of public health and safety. 8

The time burdens and administrative strain of research ethics committees are well-known, thus the idea of more tasks may not be embraced. Widening the research ethics committee's current work area might at first seem burdensome, but with efficient planning and organization of events and communication channels, the broader benefits could prove worthwhile. It would be interesting to pilot an “enhanced” research ethics committee offering service lines for editors, community, and policy-makers.

In conclusion, cooperation between scientists, editors and policymakers is essential to promote the scientific integrity of COVID-19 research and public trust. Working together does not erode stakeholder autonomy, rather it gives the autonomy of each a voice which needs to be heard, especially during the urgency of a pandemic. Research ethics committees need freedom to perform their tasks without pressure from researchers, politicians, policymakers, and funders. In the setting of a pandemic, there are many stakeholders, scientific unknowns, and time pressure. With a multiplicity of competing interests, the setting can easily be a ‘boxing ring’ of personalities and agendas; however, a collaborative forum for perspectives, debate, and ethically-driven solutions is possible. This shifts the sometimes impression of research ethics committees as a scientific bottleneck 15 to a cooperative working space. 13 Research ethics committees evolve from gatekeepers, to also a forum where all stakeholders come together to speak up for the benefit of science and society.

Declaration of conflicting interests: Prof Chirico is Co-Founder and Co- Editor in Chief of the Italy-based journal, Journal of Health and Social Sciences

Funding: The author(s) received no financial support for the research, authorship and/or publication of this article.

ORCID iD: Francesco Chirico https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8737-4368

Encyclopedia of Global Bioethics pp 650–656 Cite as

Committees: Research Ethics Committees

• Ana Borovecki 2  
• Reference work entry
• First Online: 01 January 2022

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Research ethics committees have become a permanent fixture when it comes to ethics of research. They are essential part of quality control of research protocol, and their existence and work are thoroughly described in all important international documents dealing with research ethics issues. In this contribution history, development and different types of research ethics committees are discussed. The functions, structure, and locale of research ethics committees are also addressed. The global dimension of the work of research ethics committees is also discussed.

• Research ethics committees
• Development
• Issues addressed
• Global dimension

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Borovecki, A., ten Have, H., & Oreskovic, S. (2009). Ethics committees in Croatia: Studies in bioethics . Saarbrücken: VDM Verlag Dr. Müller.

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Bouëssau, M. S., et al. (2009). Research ethics committees: Basic concepts for capacity building . Geneva: WHO.

Glasa, J. (Ed.). (2000). Ethics committees in central and Eastern Europe . Bratislava: Institute of Medical Ethics and Bioethics.

Huriet, C. (2009). Article 19: ethics committees. In H. A. M. J. ten Have & S. J. Michele (Eds.), The UNESCO universal declaration on bioethics and human rights background principles and application (pp. 265–270). Paris: UNESCO.

Jonsen, A. R., Veatch, R. M., & le Roy, W. (1998). Source book in bioethics. A documentary history . Washington, DC: Georgetown University Press.

Levine, R. J. (2004). Research ethics committees. In W. T. Reich (Ed.), Encyclopaedia of bioethics (Vol. IV, pp. 2311–2316). New York, NY: Macmillan Simon and Schuster.

ten Have, H. (2005). Establishing bioethics committees guide No. 1 (pp. 40–52). Paris: UNESCO.

Further Readings

Amdur, R., & Bankert, E. A. (2011). Institutional review board: Member handbook (3rd ed.). Sudbury, MA: Jones and Bartlett Publishers.

Emanuel, E. J., et al. (Eds.). (2008). The Oxford textbook of clinical research ethics (pp. 541–588). Oxford/New York: Oxford University Press.

Schrag, Z. M. (2010). Ethical imperialism. Institutional Review Boards and the Social Sciences, 1965–2009 . Baltimore: The Johns Hopkins University Press.

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Andrija Stampar School of Public Health, School of Medicine, University of Zagreb, Zagreb, Croatia

Ana Borovecki

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Correspondence to Ana Borovecki .

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Center for Healthcare Ethics, Duquesne University, Pittsburgh, PA, USA

Henk ten Have

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Borovecki, A. (2016). Committees: Research Ethics Committees. In: ten Have, H. (eds) Encyclopedia of Global Bioethics. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-09483-0_104

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