Posted August 2, 2017 by Tiffany Lee
The UNL Institutional Review Board is a new member of SMART IRB, an online reliance system to streamline IRB authorization agreements for investigator-initiated studies that involve multiple institutions.
The UNL IRB joins more than 200 institutions across the U.S. using SMART IRB (Streamlined, Multisite, Accelerated Resources for Trials Institutional Review Board). Funded through the National Institutes of Health, SMART IRB is a reliance agreement among institutions across the country that provides standard operating procedures and tools to support reviewing IRBs and relying organizations. Through an online reliance system, the IRB can request, track and document reliance agreements, commonly known as authorization agreements.
When UNL researchers collaborate with another member institution on research involving human subjects, the IRB may be able to utilize this reliance arrangement for the joint project.
“We’re excited to be a member of the reliance system and anticipate that it will reduce the time and effort involved in negotiating IRB authorization agreements for NIH single IRB requirements or other studies, regardless of funding status,” said Sara Frizzell, director of Research Compliance Services.
For more information about using SMART IRB, contact the university’s IRB at 402-472-6965.
