Investigators are increasingly collaborating with community partners in research projects. These community partners typically don’t have much research experience and don’t work at research institutions, meaning they may not have too much human subject protection background. However, they play a vital role in making research opportunities available to populations around Arkansas.
The UAMS IRB and the UAMS Translational Research Institute now have an alternative to CITI training available for these community partners. The CIRTIfication course is now available as an option for these learners. The CIRTification course, based at the University of Illinois Chicago, is designed for non-scientists and provides information about what they’ll need to know to carry out research responsibilities. The online course is free and takes about 3-4 hours to complete. More information about the CIRTification course can be found here.
Note that while human subject protection training is required for everyone engaged in research, including community partners, the IRB does not require this CIRTification course be used for community partners. Study teams may have other education ideas that are appropriate, and they may or may not want to use aspects of this CIRTification program. However, all study submissions should describe the method and content of community partner human subject protection training.