An education initiative to increase staff knowledge of Institutional Review Board guidelines in the USA

Health-care professionals and researchers often lack a clear understanding of the role and function of an Institutional Review Board (IRB) and few have received formal education regarding IRB guidelines, policies, and procedures. The purpose of this study was to develop an initiative to educate staff concerning fundamental IRB guidelines and to assess the retention of the information from the educational intervention with a pretest and post-test. Using a descriptive survey design, 643 professional staff were contacted by email and asked to complete an online survey. Thereafter, staff received a "10 Second IRB Update" every 2 weeks for 6 months, after which the initial survey was repeated. Although there was a slight improvement in the pretest/post-test scores for some groups, no statistically significant differences were seen. Anecdotally, staff expressed enthusiasm about the initiative, stating the updates were very effective and a great teaching tool. The findings emphasize the need to continue to explore creative approaches to education regarding IRB policies and procedures.