Ethics Review Committee

About Ethics Review Committee

Singapore Polytechnic is committed to promote a vibrant Research & Development (R&D) culture through the Technology & Innovation Centres (TICs), school laboratories and collaboration with industries. As our research and development work gain momentum, there is a need for the research community within SP to look into the ethical issues of research work. It is therefore timely that SP establishes an ERC to provide policy and operative oversight of the research activities within the campus.

The setting up of the ERC is an important milestone within SP. The ERC will certainly buttress the current research work within the campus. Its role in providing policy and operational oversight will certainly strengthen SP's position in research and development.

Role of the Ethics Review Committee (ERC)

1. To ensure adequate protection of potential and actual human subjects, through the review of research proposals

2. To conduct independent reviews of the ethical merits of research projects that involve human subjects or human tissues as proposed by SP staff

Submission Timings

The Submission Deadlines for ERC review are set out below.

2011

Submission Requirements

1. A complete application consists of 1 scanned copy of ERC Application Form, Participant Information & Consent Form, approved/awarded research proposal and all *supporting documents.

2. All relevant sections of the application form must be filled out completely, including signature from your school/centre Director. Please note that only completed application will be reviewed.

3. The Secretariat may at times requests from the Principal Investigator original documents to be furnished for verification purposes.

4. Always download the latest version of the forms from http://www.sp.edu.sg/erc.

Process after Submission

Preliminary Review by Scientific Review Committee

The Scientific Review Committee will conduct a preliminary review on the scientific merits of the research project and – where applicable – the safety aspects of the research proposal. Approved proposals are forwarded to the ERC for review.

Review by Ethics Review Committee

All applications shall undergo full review unless (1) criteria for an expedited review are met or (2) criteria for an exemption review are met.

Please refer to the Flow Chart for details.

Processing Time

The processing time for ERC in reviewing an application from the date of receipt of the submission by the Secretariat to the Principal Investigator being informed of approval or disapproval of the proposed project, could range from 2 weeks to 2 months. This is dependent on factors such as the complexity of the research, rounds of amendments (modification) to the application in response to the issues raised by the Committee.

The Principal Investigator will be kept informed at all times of the ERC's comments including decision of approval or disapproval.

Report (Half-yearly and Final)

Once the Principal Investigator has been notified by email of the ERC's decision of approval of the ERC application, the email will serve as the approval letter from the ERC. There will be no further official letter of approval to follow.
Following the approval of the proposed project, the principal investigator is obliged to notify the ERC in any event such as:

1. A deviation or changes (eg. experimental designs) from that disclosed in the documents reviewed and approved by the ERC during the course of the research. An approval on such change must be sought with the ERC.
2. Any adverse events and apparent risks beyond those predicted in the approved proposal.
3. Any new information that may alter the ethical basis of the research programme.

1. Premature termination of the research.

The Principal Investigator should keep the ERC informed of the progress of the project by submitting a Reporting Form every 6 months following the approval of the proposed project.

Final Report

The Principal Investigator should inform the ERC as soon as the project is completed with the submission of the Reporting Form.

Composition of the ERC

The Ethics Review Committee comprises an equal mix of members from SP and non-SP affiliated in various disciplines as follows:

• Phathology & Neurochemistry
• Ophthalmology
• Biochemistry & Molecular Virology
• Pharmacology
• Optometry
• Social studies/media
• Law
• Biomedical Sciences
• A lay-person

Contact Us

For further queries, please drop us an email at the following contacts:

Technology Transfer & Enterprise Centre (TTEC)

Ms Tiffany How
Tel: 6772 1591
Email: tiffany@sp.edu.sg

Ms Lew Woon Cheun
Tel: 6772 1217
Email: lew.wooncheun@sp.edu.sg

Dr Gideon Ho
Tel: 6870 8290
Email: Gideon_ho@sp.edu.sg

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