IRB Learning Assignment
You will provide a 500-1,000-word academic essay outlining and explaining what you have learned throughout the IRB process of your DNP project.
Assignment Expectations
Length: 500-1000 words: the length will depend on the complexity of your study and the nature of your research; you should be clear and concise
Structure: Include a title page and reference page in APA style. These do not count towards the minimum word amount for this assignment.
References: Use the appropriate APA style in-text citations and references for all resources utilized to answer the questions. Include references as appropriate
Format: Save your assignment as a Microsoft Word document (.doc or .docx).
Sample Answer
IRB Learning Assignment
Throughout the IRB process of my DNP project involving the implementation of sign language curricula for nursing students that can help significantly to enhance the communication between nurses and hearing-impaired patients, I have learned much, especially to do with the upholding of ethical principles during research.
One of the things I have learned has been that institutional review boards (IRBs) main goal is to actively be involved in protecting human research participants and to be actively involved in supporting the implementation and designing of sound research through approval and review of various IRB submissions (Balon et al., 2019). Various research efforts that deal with human subjects must therefore be reviewed and subsequently approved by the IRB or be given an exemption of determination before the research begins (Balon et al., 2019).
During my IRB review, I also learned that there are different types of IRB review, including comprehensive, exempt, and not regulated. The associated review process and the type of IRB review will therefore be determined by different factors such as the level of risk that certain research has to research participants, the sensitivity of research questions provided in given research, all the complexity of research design, the type of research that is being conducted such as an ethnographic observation as a way or an educational intervention. The involvement of vulnerable populations as research participants will also significantly affect the associated review process and the IRB review (Grady, 2015). For instance, since my study involved nurses and hearing-impaired patients, a full-board IRB review was needed as some of the participants would be classified as vulnerable populations. The use of identifiable information and research will also determine the type of IRB review that a given researcher will conduct. Finally, the applicability of one or more criteria for expedited or exempt review will determine the type of IRB review that will be needed for given research (Grant & Bouskill, 2019).
During the IRB review process for my DNP project, I learned that a comprehensive IRB review is required to ensure that the subject selection in a study that involves one subject is equitable. A comprehensive IRB review is also required to minimize the risk to subjects in given research and to ensure that any form of risk will be reasonable compared to the anticipated benefits of given research (Grant & Bouskill, 2019). It is also important for a comprehensive IRB review to be conducted to ensure the confidentiality and privacy of the research participants in a given study is protected. A comprehensive IRB review will also be important in ensuring that the informed consent processes in an organization meet the federal regulatory standards of research related to human subjects (Grant & Bouskill, 2019).
Throughout the IRB process of my DNP project, I have also learned the importance of different principles of research ethics which include informed consent, beneficence and nonmaleficence, autonomy, confidentiality, and data protection integrity and conflict of interest. Relating to the ethical principle of autonomy, I learnt that all participants in research must participate voluntarily and free from any undue influence and coercion. The dignity rights and autonomy of research participants should therefore be respected and protected. On the other hand, related to the principle of beneficence and nonmaleficence or research that is conducted should be worthwhile and therefore provide more benefits that significantly outweigh the harm or risk associated with such a project (Parker, 2016).
References
- Balon, R., Guerrero, A. P. S., Coverdale, J. H., Brenner, A. M., Louie, A. K., Beresin, E. V., & Roberts, L. W. (2019). Institutional Review Board Approval as an Educational Tool. Academic Psychiatry, 43(3), 285–289. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40596-019-01027-9
- Grady, C. (2015). Institutional Review Boards. Chest, 148(5), 1148–1155. https://doi.org/10.1378/chest.15-0706
- Grant, S., & Bouskill, K. E. (2019). Opinion: Why institutional review boards should have a role in the open science movement. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 116(43), 21336–21338. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1916420116
- Parker, G. E. (2016). A Framework for Navigating Institutional Review Board (IRB) Oversight in the Complicated Zone of Research. Cureus. https://doi.org/10.7759/cureus.844
