title: The establishment of research ethics consultation services (RECS): an emerging research resource.
abstract: Emphasis on translational research to facilitate progression from the laboratory into the community also creates a dynamic in which ethics and social policy questions and solutions are ever pressing. In response, academic institutions are creating Research Ethics Consultation Services (RECS). All Clinical Translational Science Award institutions were surveyed in early 2010 to determine which institutions have a RECS in operation and what is their composition and function. Of the 46 institutions surveyed, 33 (70%) have a RECS. Only 15 RECS have received any consult requests in the last year. Issues that are common among these relatively nascent services include relationships with institutional oversight committees, balancing requestor concerns about confidentiality with research integrity and human subjects protection priorities, tracking consult data and outcomes, and developing systems for internal evaluation. There is variability in how these issues are approached. It will be important to be attentive to the institutional context to develop an appropriate approach. Further data about the issues raised by requestors and the recommendations provided are necessary to build a community of scholars who can navigate and resolve ethical issues encountered along the translational research pathway.
authors: Departments of Medicine and Health Sciences Research and Center for Translational Science Activities, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN, USA. mccormick.jb@mayo.edu
authors: Jennifer B
authors: JB
authors: McCormick
authors: Richard R
authors: RR
authors: Sharp
authors: Abigale L
authors: AL
authors: Ottenberg
authors: Carson R
authors: CR
authors: Reider
authors: Holly A
authors: HA
authors: Taylor
authors: Benjamin S
authors: BS
authors: Wilfond
mesh_terms: D000047:Academies and Institutes / Q000941:ethics / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D003142:Communication; D003219:Confidentiality / Q000941:ethics; D003625:Data Collection / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D033061:Ethics Consultation / Q000191:economics / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D032984:Ethics, Research; D006295:Health Resources / Q000941:ethics* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D006297:Health Services Accessibility / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D006801:Humans; D057170:Translational Research, Biomedical / Q000191:economics / Q000941:ethics / Q000706:statistics & numerical data
references: PLoS Biol. 2009 Feb 24;7(2):e42
references: 19243222
references: PLoS One. 2009;4(3):e4659
references: 19252737
references: Genet Med. 2012 Apr;14(4):385-92
references: 22382801
references: Am J Bioeth. 2008 Mar;8(3):37-9; discussion W4-6
references: 18570101
references: Annu Rev Genomics Hum Genet. 2007;8:343-64
references: 17550341
references: IRB. 2009 Mar-Apr;31(2):9-14
references: 19402338
references: J Biomed Inform. 2009 Apr;42(2):377-81
references: 18929686
references: IRB. 2008 Nov-Dec;30(6):1-6
references: 19119757
references: IRB. 2009 Nov-Dec;31(6):1-9
references: 20034184
references: Science. 2006 Feb 10;311(5762):783-4
references: 16469905
references: J Clin Ethics. 2005 Fall;16(3):267-76
references: 16302553
references: Sci Transl Med. 2012 Jan 25;4(118):118cm1
references: 22277965
references: Acad Med. 2007 Sep;82(9):900-4
references: 17726404
references: Am J Bioeth. 2008 Mar;8(3):4-13
references: 18570086
references: Clin Pharmacol Ther. 2011 Mar;89(3):343-5
references: 21326261