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MEMBERS OF SANGATH'S
INSTITUTIONAL REVIEW BOARD Chairperson: Raj Vaidya, pharmacist Members:
Dr Amit Dias, epidemiologist
Dr Neerja Chowdhary, psychiatrist Dr Abhijit Nadkarni, psychiatrist Rajal Shinkre, principal, Sheela Gupte, medical practitioner
Vishram Gupte, lawyer Dr Vikram Patel, psychiatrist
Gracy Andrew, clinical psychologist |
As far as possible, research participants are offered free health care relevant to the research: for example, participants who have symptoms of mental disorder are referred to a Sangath professional. Independent Trial Steering Committees, Data Monitoring and Ethics Committees oversee our trials, and we seek ICMR approval for all our international collaborative research projects.
IRB Procedures:
Only projects that have received ethical approval from Sangath’s IRB are permitted to be executed. The board meets four times a year with dates scheduled at least two months in advance.
The secretary receives proposals for approval at least two weeks before the meetings according to a prescribed format (Annexure V). S/he circulates them to all members at least 10 days before the meeting, during which applicants or their representatives make a presentation. All queries of the IRB committee must be clarified during the meeting. The board can then approve the proposal or ask for suggestions and recommendations to be incorporated before ethical clearance is granted. The chairperson later grants formal approval (Annexure V C).
Any major change in the protocol of an ongoing project following ethical approval will invite the need for fresh approval. If, for example, a particular project decided to offer incentives to participants after the original proposal was submitted and approved, it will need to seek permission from the IRB for that particular addition. Any adverse events that may occur during research along with action taken must also be reported to the IRB.
Important Documents
