AAHRPP re-accredits BRI

Officials announced today that Baylor Research Institute (BRI), part of the Baylor Health Care System, was recently re-accredited by the Association for the Accreditation of Human Research Protection Programs (AAHRPP). The re-accreditation certifies that BRI maintains efficient systems for monitoring research participant safety and embraces ethical standards higher than required by law in order to protect human participants participating in BRI research programs. Only 200 out of the thousands of human research protection programs in the U.S., Canada and abroad have earned this prestigious distinction.

"To address any risks in human research, Baylor has always implemented protection programs that exceed federal guidelines," explains Michael Ramsay, M.D., president of Baylor Research Institute. "This accreditation re-affirms for the public that Baylor Research Institute is a premiere resource in the DFW area for both leading health care and cutting-edge medical knowledge. We strongly believe it's our commitment to research that's both ethically and scientifically sound that enables us to stand out in our field."

The AAHRRP is an independent, non-profit organization dedicated to ensuring rigorous and thorough practices to protect human participants in research projects. It conducts on-site inspections and thorough reviews of policies and procedures.

"The 2009 inspection lasted three days," says Elizabeth Cothran, Director of the Office of Research Subject Protection at BRI, who coordinated the process. "It was an exhaustive process that involved more than 20 interviews with members of the Institutional Review Board and Institutional Review Board staff, as well as BRI researchers, research staff and administrative representatives."

In their report, AAHRPP highlighted a number of strengths at BRI:

- Organizational commitment to ethical research
- Strong leadership prioritizing medical ethics
- Thorough oversight to enable early interventions for potential risks
- Numerous educational programs to facilitate the union of strong ethics and research

In 2003, BRI was one of the first five programs to receive accreditation from the AAHRPP. In 2006, the Institute received its first three-year reaccreditation. Dr. Ramsay says that not only does the accreditation benefit research participants and enhance public trust, the government and various funding agencies look more favorably on accredited institutions.