Research Ethics
Welcome
This website contains information to assist faculty and students in obtaining approvals to conduct research that involves humans, animals, and biohazards. All Ethics Application Forms (Human, Animal, and Biohazard) are accessible through the Romeo software system. Please click here for more information on Romeo.
Wondering where to start?
See our Ethics FAQ
Human Ethics Review Board
All research involving human participants and/or their private records must receive approval by the Research Ethics Board (REB) prior to contacting potential participants and/or accessing private records. To determine whether your project requires REB approval, please contact the REB at TRU-REB@tru.ca. The TRU REB is obliged to ensure compliance with the Tri-Council Policy Statement: Ethical Conduct for Research Involving Humans – TCPS 2 (2018) (ethics.gc.ca). REB members use the TCPS2 to guide their reviews and provide feedback to researchers. REB reviews are a peer review process by which the REB supports researchers by ensuring that their projects follow the TCPS2 guide. This is how the REB helps fulfill TRU’s contractual obligation to ensure that all researchers affiliated with TRU follow the TCPS2 guidelines in the conduct of their research and teaching.
PLEASE NOTE: Projects that pose minimal risk will be reviewed in approximately four weeks. After that you can expect feedback from the REB on your application. This feedback will be sent to you through ROMEO. The REB feedback or ‘Provisos’ will include instructions on how to revise and resubmit your application form based on the REB feedback. After you have re-submitted your revisions, if clarifications or revisions are still outstanding, then your application may be returned to you again. If no further clarification or revisions are required, then you will be issued a letter of approval.
Please note that the time to review applications can vary a little and depends on the volume of applications under review at that moment. Reviews tend to take a little longer in August and over Christmas. Please keep this in mind as you plan your research project.
If you have any further questions, then please do not hesitate to contact the REB by phone: 250-852-7122 or email: TRU-REB@tru.ca.
Projects that post above minimal risk are reviewed by the full board at an REB meeting. Please see the following tentative schedule of submission deadlines for above minimal risk studies and REB meeting dates.
2022 REB Deadlines and Meeting Dates
Research Ethics BC - The Harmonized Approach and Applications
In September of 2019 TRU joined the Research Ethics BC Harmonization Project to better help researchers with ethics applications that involve more than one university and/or health authority. With one ethics application researchers can obtain ethics approval from multiple ethics boards at once by using the UBC RiSE application system. This new process if part of the BC AHSN network and Research Ethics BC.
How does Research Ethics BC facilitate health systems change in the province? What is their role inside the BC Academic Health Science Network? "Who is Research Ethics BC?" begins to answer these questions. It's a short video that introduces REBC's network of stakeholders, and what supports this operational unit of BC AHSN can offer.
Please see the video developed by REBC Navigator Paola Pinto Vidal for further information. Watch the video here on BC AHSN’s YouTube Channel
Human Ethics Policy - Draft
Please note: There is an On-line Introductory Tutorial available at http://www.pre.ethics.gc.ca/ which provides helpful information on the Goals of the Policy, the Context of an Ethics Framework and its first five sections: Ethics Review, Free and Informed Consent, Privacy and Confidentiality, Conflict of Interest and Inclusion in Research.
Human Ethics Resources
- CIHR Guidelines for Health Research Involving Aboriginal People
- Tri-Council Policy Statement: Ethical Conduct for Research Involving Humans
- Interagency Advisory Panel on Research Ethics (PRE)
- National Council on Ethics in Human Research
Human Ethics Review Templates
Please note that these are templates only. Contact TRU-REB@tru.ca if you have any questions.
- Checklist — Informed Consent to Participate in a Research Project
- EXAMPLE — Informed Consent for Minors and Captive and Dependent Populations by Parent, Guardian and or Other Appropriate Authority to Participate in a Research Project or Experiment
- EXAMPLE — Telephone Contact Form
- EXAMPLE — Deception Form
- EXAMPLE — Photo Release Form
Animal Care Committee
Submission Deadline: Continuous Intake
Thompson Rivers University (TRU) regards the use of animals in research, teaching, testing and production as a privilege and not a right. All individuals involved in the use of animals for research, teaching, testing and production must care for their animals in compliance with the TRU Animal Care Committee (TRU-ACC) protocols, the Canadian Council for Animal Care (CCAC) Guidelines and in accordance with Sections 444-447 of the Criminal Code of Canada and Section 24 of the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act.
Thompson Rivers University treats all animals used in teaching and research with the highest standards of ethical care and treatment, and has been recognized with a Certificate of Good Animal Practice issued by the Canadian Council on Animal Care.
Animal Care Committee Resources
- Annual Animal Use Data Reporting Form
- CCAC Categories of Invasiveness in Animal Experiments
- CCAC Categories of Invasiveness in Wildlife Studies
Please contact TRUacc@tru.ca if you have any questions.
Biosafety Committee
All Biosafety resources are now found in the TRU Romeo system. This includes Biosafety Application and Standard Operating Procedure forms.
Please refer to our Biosafety website for additional information. https://www.tru.ca/hsafety/biosafety.html
This office is supported by the federal Research Support Fund. The Fund assists Canadian post-secondary institutions to maintain a world-class research environment, which includes human ethics, animal care and biosafety.
