University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences Logo University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences
Research and Innovation

Financial Disclosures / Conflict of Interest

Disclosing Interests in Publications and Presentations

Academic-industrial collaboration is essential to diversifying and enhancing UAMS’ research capacity. Collaborative efforts also increase transparency needs to ensure public trust in researchers, institutions, and research results. UAMS’s Conflict of Interest (COI) policies for Academic Staff Members ensures UAMS and its researchers remain compliant with federal and state financial COI regulations. Moreover, the scope of disclosure interests may vary by institution, publication, or a presentation’s location or audience. As outlined in the aforementioned policy, all individuals at UAMS who are responsible for the design, conduct, or reporting of research (including, but not limited to faculty, PIs, Co-PIs, etc.) are personally responsible for disclosing all financial/personal relationships that might bias their work in addition to those potential conflicts identified by the UAMS Academic COI Committee.

What does this mean for UAMS researchers?

  1. Before engaging in outside employment, all faculty must obtain prior approval using UAMS’s Outside Employment system.
  2. It is the personal responsibility of all UAMS researchers to familiarize themselves with policies implicated by engaging in outside employment.
  3. You must make a conflict of interest disclosure as outlined in the UAMS COI Policy (i.e., within 14 days of the start of employment, annually, and within 30 days of acquiring a new reportable interest).
  4. Even if the Academic COI Committee has found a researcher’s reported interest does not rise to the level of being a conflict of interest as defined by UAMS (i.e., the interest reasonably appears not to be directly related or does not appear to have a significant impact), the researcher must still follow disclosure requirements for any publication in which they submit a manuscript and any presentation/symposium they attend.

Additional Resources