Overview of Human Subjects Protections
Human subjects protections is about caring for the well-being of people who volunteer to help researchers by participating in their studies. These researchers come from colleges and universities, medical facilities and medical schools, and private and public research institutes. Regardless where a researcher in the United States is working, the ethical principles and fundamental regulations are the same.
Every institution that accepts public funding for research must commit to abiding by one of the three primary sets of ethical principles: the Declaration of Helsinki, the Nuremberg Code, or the Belmont Report. MSU Denver has committed to following the three principles of the Belmont Report: Respect for Persons, Beneficence, and Justice.
In addition, each institution must have an Institutional Review Board (IRB) that is charged with reviewing the research to ensure that it complies with ethical principles and the federal regulations that govern human subjects protections.
Countries around the world have adopted standards for human subjects protections as well. Research conducted by a member of the MSU Denver community outside of the United States must be reviewed by the MSU Denver IRB using not only the standards of the University, but also the standards adopted by the country where the research will take place.
Find out more about the ethics of human subjects protections here.
Learn about 45 CFR 46, the regulations for human subjects protections here.
