Institutional Review Board

Protecting Your Rights and Welfare

Sanford Health’s Institutional Review Board (IRB) is a key component of our Human Research Protection Program. The board has one focus: protecting the rights, safety and well-being of participants in our research studies. Each research study is required to have IRB review and approval before any research begins to ensure the study is well-planned, scientifically sound, and ethical.

The IRB consists of a diverse group of individuals, including medical experts, physicians, research scientists, non-scientific members, patient advocates and local community members. Sanford Health maintains three IRB panels for investigator initiated, oncology and industry sponsored studies. A highly qualified team works to support the IRB panels.

Any human subject research brought before the IRB is scrutinized to ensure it is ethically and legally conducted under local, state and federal regulations. The IRB makes sure the study aligns with:

• Federal Policy for the Protection of Human Subjects (“Common Rule”): Regulatory rules for research.
• Belmont Report: Contains the basic ethical principles of respect for persons, beneficence and justice when conducting research.

Additional requirements are set by the board’s accrediting body, the Association for the Accreditation of Human Research Protection Programs (AAHRPP), which goes above federal regulation.