Scope and Function

The IRB

The University of Tennessee Health Science Center (UTHSC) Institutional Review Board (IRB) is comprised of 4 sections, each of which meet monthly in 910 Madison, Suite 502, Memphis, TN or via Zoom on the first, second, third, and fourth Wednesdays of the month. View meeting schedules for meeting times and submission deadlines.

Scope

The UTHSC IRB has oversight authority for all research with human subjects conducted by UTHSC faculty, staff, students, residents, or fellows. The UTHSC IRB has responsibility for the review of research involving human subjects for Campbell Clinic, Le Bonheur Children's Hospital, Methodist Healthcare-Memphis Hospitals, Regional One Health, and physician practice groups such a UT Le Bonheur Pediatric Specialists, UT Regional One Health Physicians, and University Clinical Health. In addition, the UTHSC IRB has oversight authority for some human subjects research conducted by faculty, staff, students, residents, and fellows at Semmes Murphey.

The UTHSC IRB maintains reliance agreements with St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital and University of Memphis (see SOP: UTHSC IRB Utilization of Local Reliance Agreements). The IRB also maintains a reliance agreement with the National Cancer Institute (NCI) CIRB program (see SOP: UTHSC IRB Utilization of the NCI CIRB.)  

The IRB at its discretion may oversee research activities conducted by non-UTHSC personnel who are not covered by any of the aforementioned agreements.  

Further, the UTHSC IRB reviews non-research requests for the use of drugs, biologics, or devices under the federal regulations pertaining to Emergency Use, Compassionate Use/Treatment Use, and Humanitarians Use Devices (HUDs) at UTHSC and its affiliated institutions.

Function

The primary function of the IRB is to protect the rights and welfare of human subjects involved in research activities being conducted under the appropriate federal, state, and university regulations. As a secondary function, the IRB ensures that the university, affiliate institutions, and the investigators are compliant with ethical standards and regulations governing human subjects research. While the investigator carries the primary responsibility for assuring that research protocols are carried out according to applicable standards and regulations, the IRB office is available to assist investigators to ensure regulatory compliant human subject research studies.