Queen’s two research ethics boards, the Health Sciences and Affiliated Teaching Hospitals Research Ethics Board (HSREB) and the General Research Ethics Board (GREB), welcome new member applications. The boards review any proposed research involving human participants conducted under the auspices of the university and/or its affiliated hospitals.

Ethics board members are volunteers who dedicate approximately 2-4 hours a week to review research protocols and applications to ensure ethical guidelines and principles are upheld. They also participate in monthly meetings, either in person or virtually.

GREB focuses on humanities, social sciences, science, engineering, and administrative research involving humans, while HSREB primarily has ethics authority over health science research, including all research conducted at the affiliated teaching hospitals Kingston Health Sciences Centre, Providence Care Centre, and Ongwanada.

"Our volunteer board members are committed to upholding the highest standards of research ethics, which follow evolving provincial, national, and international guidelines and seeking to proactively advance research ethics practices at Queen’s University to encourage and promote excellence in research and scholarship," says GREB chair Jacob Brower (Smith Business).

Membership of the HSREB board is vital to the preservation and promotion of quality patient-focused research – safeguarding the best interests of research participants is always the guiding standard. “It is our mission to ensure that research involving human participants follows equity-oriented principles. Further, we promote education and ongoing training for all researchers and board members, facilitating the review process through guidance and support to the researchers in the submission and review process,” says HSREB chair Dean A. Tripp (Psychology).

The HSREB is recruiting three clinician scientists interested in joining this effort, while GREB is recruiting four faculty members. The deadline for applications is August 15, 2024. Candidates external to Queen’s are also welcome to apply.

Interested candidates should email chair.greb@queensu.ca or hsreb@queensu.ca. To learn more about research ethics at Queen’s, visit the website.