Researchers should be aware that institutions, organizations, or other groups under study may have requirements for allowing access to their sites and to participants, and that some of these may have established mechanisms or guidelines e.g., school boards, Indigenous communities, correctional services, After receiving ethics approval from the HREB or ICEHR, or acknowledgement from the HREA, you may also need organizational approval. Organizational approval is not another ethics review; it is a separate and distinct process. It is your responsibility to seek the necessary organizational approval from the Newfoundland and Labrador Health Services or other organization as appropriate prior to commencing your study.
Research involving Newfoundland and Labrador Health Services (NLHS)
All approved health research involving Newfoundland and Labrador Health Services(NLHS) must be reviewed by an organizational approval committee. The committee examines applications for research that require the use of NLHS facilities, staff time, health records or other data, and/or services and programs that affect its operations. The organizational approval committee reviews studies to assess the privacy implications of research proposals to ensure that appropriate data collection, use, disclosure, transfer, storage, retention and destruction processes are in place. They also assess the resource implications on the organization.
Research involving Indigenous Communities
Indigenous Research Advisory Committees (RACs) are committees that review applications by researchers to conduct research with a particular community or on Indigenous lands. The review by an Indigenous RAC is for the purposes of ensuring that the research is conducted in a manner that is appropriate to the spiritual, cultural, social and environmental context of the community, in keeping with the needs, expectations and values of the community, and conducted in keeping with the principles of OCAP (ownership, control, access and possession). Individual community RACs should be consulted about the process for applying for review. Along with the Application, community review requires that consent forms and recruitment materials (posters, letters of invitation etc.) be approved.
For further information please consult the Guidelines for conducting research with Indigenous communities in Newfoundland & Labrador or Memorial University’s Indigenous Research resources and consult with the appropriate Newfoundland and Labrador Indigenous Research Advisory Committees below.