August 11, 2020 Update on COVID-19 and human subjects research at WLU Dear Colleagues: The West Liberty University Institutional Review Board (IRB) is continuing to review research proposal submissions on a rolling basis as we move into the fall semester. At this time, the IRB has determined that research activities involving in-person interactions with participants may resume/begin with protective measures and procedures in place. These protective measures and procedures should be clearly and thoroughly described in the research proposal application. For any research activities that had to stop or postpone in person data collection due to COVID-19, please contact the IRB regarding incorporating protective measures and procedures for IRB approval before in-person data collection can begin/resume. University, state, and federal mandates must be abided, which currently include social distancing (at least 6 feet), indoor occupancy limitations, facial coverings, and various sanitizing methods. Note that these mandates and guidelines may change, and that it is the researcher’s responsibility to keep abreast of the regulations and standards. Please refer to your association, organization and/or department for further rules, regulations, and guidelines according to research in your specific field. The IRB urges researchers to consider further extra methods and precautions to utilize safe practice measures based on your specific research study in order to keep everyone as comfortable, safe and healthy as realistically possible. Please use the link below to access the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) updates, guidelines and various resources for general safe practices https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/index.html. Although in-person research may resume with extra precautions, the IRB strongly recommends and encourages researchers and research advisors to devise research activities so that they involve NO face-to-face interactions with participants, such as online surveys or phone interviews, whenever possible. In-person only research activities (i.e. research without any virtual component or contingency plan) are generally NOT recommended at this time and will only be considered for approval if a non-contact option is not possible or feasible with regards to the research objectives. The benefits of any research proposal requesting in-person research must clearly outweigh the heighted potential risks of conducting research in person at this time.  Any change to the status of West Liberty University regarding COVID-19, such as university closure or courses moved all online/remote, WILL affect the status of all research activities (except for research already deemed exempt). If this happens, researchers should contact the IRB regarding their study to discuss if their research is able to continue, if modifications would be required, or if their research would need to halt. If you have any questions, please contact [email protected] Mitchell J. Greco WLU IRB Co-Chair   ——————————————- March 16, 2020 Dear Colleagues: Due to the ongoing concerns and developments related to COVID-19, the West Liberty University Institutional Review Board (IRB) has determined that most IRB approved research activities involving in-person interactions with subjects MUST STOP until in person classes at West Liberty University resume.  The only exceptions are if canceling or postponing the activities would either (A) increase the risk to the subject’s safety or wellbeing or (B) deprive the subject of a potential direct benefit. This is being done to protect research subjects. If you or one of your students are currently conducting in person data collection, please contact the IRB for guidance on how to proceed.    Research activities that involve NO face-to-face interactions with subjects, for example online surveys or phone interviews, may continue. The IRB will continue to review and approve submissions as they come in. For studies that are approvable, but involve in person interactions, the IRB will approve the study but explicitly note that enrollment cannot start until WLU is back to normal operations. If you have any questions, please contact [email protected] ~Tifani Fletcher WLU IRB Chair ———————————————————————————————————————————————- The purpose of the West Liberty University (WLU) Institutional Review Board (IRB) is to protect the rights and welfare of human research participants. This web site provides resources and information useful for research staff, research participants, members of the IRB, and other individuals interested in the protection of human participants of research. The Institutional Review Board at WLU provides assistance to faculty, students, and staff to promote the protection of the participants of research, provide guidance to investigators in the proposal process, and review research for compliance with applicable federal law and local policies. Any WLU affiliated persons conducting human subjects research are required to complete the designated research training, and the primary investigator is required to submit their research proposal to the IRB for review. Reviews may take several weeks from submission to IRB notification, therefore researchers should plan accordingly. Please contact the IRB for any questions involving Human Subjects Research at WLU. IRB overview video Revised Common Rule Q&As (effective January 21, 2019)