VCU Human Research Protection Program Earns Full Accreditation

By Sathya Achia Abraham and Sara Hall

The Association for the Accreditation of Human Research Protection Programs, Inc., has announced full accreditation for Virginia Commonwealth University's Human Research Protection Program.

The AAHRPP announced the accreditation after a critique process that included an on-site evaluation and council review. 

"This accreditation recognizes VCU as a research facility dedicated to high-quality research and protection of our research participants, said Francis Macrina, Ph.D., VCU's vice president for research. "This honor also represents the high ethical and professional standards maintained in research conducted at VCU."

The designation makes VCU the first and only university in Virginia fully accredited by AAHRPP. Last year, VCU received more than $211 million in sponsored research funding. 

AAHRPP is a national non-profit organization that serves to protect human research participants by working with organizations that exhibit exceptional safeguards and ethical standards surrounding human research.  

AAHRPP accreditation acceptance is based on standards that exceed federal regulations, such as extending protections to all research participants and not just those involved in federally sponsored or regulated research.  Moreover, AAHRPP sets forth rules that govern human research to address conflict of interest issues and community education.

Applicants participate in a rigorous accreditation process and must be able to demonstrate that extensive safeguards are built into every level of their research operations. Accreditation is valid for three years.

AAHRPP accreditations total 68 organizations with 261 entities, which represent an array of research in the fields of biomedicine, behavioral and social science.