The HSIRB reviews all Moravian College student, faculty, and administration
research proposals that involve human beings as subjects.

2012-2013 members of the HSIRB Committee:

• Dr. Virginia Adams O’Connell, Co-Chair, Department of Sociology
• Dr. Lori J. Toedter, Co-Chair, Department of Psychology
• Dr. Christie Gilson, Department of Education
• Dr. Sarah Johnson, Department of Psychology
• Dr. Susan Scholtz, Department of Nursing
• Dr. Carol Traupmann-Carr, Dean of Curriculum & Academic Programs
• Dr. Debra Wetcher-Hendricks, Department of Sociology

Forms and information for proposers:

• Moravian College Human Subjects Policy: This 22-page document lists all the rules informing the functioning of the HSIRB committee.  You can refer to this document if you have specific questions about different aspects of the research design and/or committee review process, or if you would like to review core conditions of ethical research design.
• HSIRB Proposal Form: This is the primary form completed by the researcher which provides details about the research project.  All proposers must complete and submit this form. 
• HSIRB Informed Consent Template: This form is intended to help proposer draft their informed consent form/letter.  This template outlines all of the information that proposers must provide in order to assure informed consent. 
• HSIRB Consent Form Instructions: This form provides some additional information on drafting the informed consent document. 
• HSIRB Tips: Other helpful tips as proposers draft their proposals.
• HSIRB Guidelines for Student Proposers: This document provides guidelines to students who may be navigating the research proposal process for the first time. 

Note: These materials are also available on the campus network at: "pawn/public/hsirb" (Macintosh) or "p:\hsirb" (PC)

Complete proposals include:

1. A completed HSIRB proposal form (submitted as a Word document—if you do not have access to Word from your personal computer, please convert the file to *.doc or *.docx using a Moravian College public computer). 
2. Informed consent document(s)
3. Copies or links to all research instruments, and copyright clearance if using copyrighted instruments 
4. Copies of debriefing materials if and only if the proposal involves deception.

Submit all of your forms electronically to:

hsirb@moravian.edu

Please make sure that ALL of your proposal materials are sent collectively in one email submission, otherwise the review process will be delayed. 

Timing of the review process:

During the standard academic calendar, the HSIRB committee reviews proposals on a rolling basis.  Given the large volume of proposals we receive from faculty, Honors students, other undergraduate students and graduate students, it typically takes us two weeks to complete an initial review of a completed proposal.  Many proposals often require some edits/modifications before we can grant full approval and depending on how quickly the proposal author attends to these edits, the revisions process often adds an additional week to the review process for a total turn-around time of three weeks.  Proposers should keep this time frame in mind as they plan their research projects.  Students who are completing a research project for a class must pay close attention and submit their research proposals in the first few weeks of the semester to assure adequate time for review and revision.  Honors students should make sure their proposals are submitted well ahead of the semester in which they plan to conduct their research.

Some Helpful Websites:

Protecting Human Research Participants

NIH Institute for Extramural Research
Link to PHRP Online Course
http://phrp.nihtraining.com/users/login.php

This online course is designed to prepare investigators involved in the design and/or conduct of research involving human subjects to understand their obligations to protect the rights and welfare of subjects in research. The course material presents basic concepts, principles, and issues related to the protection of research participants.  At the end of the course, participants can obtain a certificate that verifies that they have reviewed all of the course material. 

Upon completion of this course, you should be able to:

• Describe the history and importance of human subjects protections
• Identify research activities that involve human subjects
• Discover the risks a research project might pose to participants
• Understand how to minimize the risks posed by a research project
• Describe additional protections needed for vulnerable populations
• Understand additional issues that should be considered for international research
• Describe appropriate procedures for recruiting research participants and obtaining informed consent
• Identify the different committees that monitor human subjects protections
• Understand the importance of study design in the protection of research participants
• The first module examines significant historical events that have contributed to the way we view the protections for participants in clinical research today.

The Belmont Report: Office of the Secretary

Ethical Principles and Guidelines for the Protection of Human
Subjects of Research, The National Commission for the Protection of Human Subjects
of Biomedical and Behavioral Research
http://www.hhs.gov/ohrp/humansubjects/guidance/belmont.htm

What is Ethics in Research & Why is it Important?

by David B. Resnik, J.D., Ph.D.

http://www.niehs.nih.gov/research/resources/bioethics/whatis/index.cfm

Protection of Human Subjects in Research Funded or Regulated by U.S. Government:

How today’s rules prohibit ethical abuses in human subjects research.
http://www.hhs.gov/1946inoculationstudy/information_on_protection_of_human_subjects_in_research.pdf

Questions? Contact one of the HSIRB Co-Chairs:

Dr. Virginia Adams O'Connell, Co-Chair
voconne1@moravian.edu
(610) 625-7756

Dr. Lori J. Toedter, Co-Chair
ltoedter@moravian.edu
(610) 861-1565