Research Governance and Ethics

Research governance is a process for managing research. Its purpose is to ensure that the University’s research is well-designed, led and conducted by suitably qualified and experienced people and complies with relevant policies and laws.

It applies to all human research, and to regulated research in all areas.

Research ethics is about ensuring that your research – especially if it involves human participants or subjects – is carried out appropriately.

It is also about identifying and managing risks to participants and to you, the people carrying out the research.

Northern Ireland and UK-wide legislation or regulations and policies govern how, where and with whom research can be done, and we need to reflect these in our own practice. For example, any research involving patients in health and social care must go through detailed and sometimes lengthy external review and approval processes (see timelines below).

Legislation such as the General Data Protection Regulations (2018) and the Human Tissue Act – which has been UK law since 2006 – require organisations that hold and process personal information and human cellular material to comply with strict requirements around consent and future use.

And, as we all know, litigation and damages claims have a higher profile than ever before and this has impacted on insurance provision and the level of information we are required to maintain and provide to our brokers.

Other recent developments, including the introduction of UK-wide policies on good research conduct and integrity in all subject areas, continue to impact upon research across the University.

Some basic general principles normally apply.

For example:

• your research should not have the capacity to cause injury or other (psychological, emotional) harm
• people should not be coerced or falsely led into taking part
• consent or appropriate permission must be obtained before you use individuals’ personal data or tissues
• and all relevant information – including any risks, burdens or disadvantages – should usually be made clear in advance to potential participants.

These are amongst the issues that will be reviewed by a research ethics committee and which you need to address in your research design.

Ethical review is at the core of research governance, risk management and quality assurance in the health services and in universities.

Many journals will only accept papers on human research if there is evidence that it has been assessed by an ethics committee or equivalent, and the research councils and most other funding organisations have stipulated it as a requirement.

The University’s Research Governance team (part of the Department for Research & Impact) has a remit to:

• keep national and other relevant policy and practice under review and to ensure that you - through policies, procedures, training and guidance - are kept fully informed and supported in your engagement with internal and external processes
• provide an interface with health and social services research management across the UK, with particular responsibilities to ensure that arrangements are in place to enable your research with patients and other vulnerable people to proceed
• ensure that your research is compliant with existing and new policies and legislation