We the IRB liken ourselves to ducks on a pond — calm on the surface, but paddling furiously underwater to keep up. Some institutions have disallowed the submission of new studies at this time, due to new time constraints or human subject protections concerns created by dealing with the Covid 19 pandemic. The UAMS IRB has no plans to impose such a step, because we think it our job to support all human subject research under our purview.
While all research is important, some research projects are more time-sensitive than others. The UAMS IRB will be prioritizing reviews of new human subject research submissions to make sure everyone meets any pending deadlines. Projects directly relating to Covid-19 will get priority, as will any project facing a funding- or sponsor-related deadline, or other deadline that must be met for the study to be able to be carried out. Studies that have no pressing initiation or completion deadline will still be reviewed, but the review may take a little longer than usual.