The goal of this project is to enhance and strengthen the human subject protections program at the University of South Florida (USF) through educational initiatives and to share those initiatives with the University of Central Florida (UCF), Orlando, Florida and the University Community Hospital (UHC), Tampa, Florida (a private hospital that maintains no affiliation with USF). This goal will be achieved by developing educational and training opportunities on the ethical aspects of human subject research utilizing state-of-the-art electronic and print media. Targeted audiences include (1) Principal Investigators (PI) and research staff; (2) Institutional Review Board (IRB) members and support staff; and (3) human research participants. Desirable outcomes include: * Design, development, and dissemination of electronically published educational programs, including materials in print and electronic media, that assist investigators and research staff in planning and conducting ethically sound research studies; * Design and development of a web-based IRB Resource Library for investigators, research staff, IRB members, IRB support staff, and potential and currently enrolled research participants that will contain information, documents, and links to web sites relevant to the ethical conduct of human subject research. This library will also include educational materials developed in-house or available through other medias; * Design, development, and dissemination of electronically published pamphlets and brochures that focus on information for potential research subjects, materials outlining enrolled subjects' rights and responsibilities, and PI responsibilities when conducting human subject research; and * Design, development, and implementation of an electronic needs-assessment tool for evaluating the informed consent process of research participants to ensure appropriate level of understanding of the research in which they participate. The USF IRB Education/Training Initiative is a comprehensive program that will ensure greater human subject protections by focusing on the ethical principles of human subject research as it pertains to each party of interest: the Institution, the IRB, the PI and research staff, and the research participant. Using state-of-the-art technology, USF will share its educational programs with UCF, UCH, and community-based institutions conducting human subject research within the Tampa Bay area.
