‘Obstructive and power hungry’?: the Australian human research ethics process

Abstract

Objectives

To investigate the views of Human Research Ethics Committee (HREC) members and of researchers concerning the human research ethics review process in Australia.

To examine whether there are differences between views of researchers and HREC members.

Design and setting

Registrants at the NHMRC Ethics in Human Research Conference held in Canberra in May 2005 were surveyed by anonymous questionnaire comprising 14 questionnaire items and background demographic questions.

Results

Of the 407 registrants, 252 completed the questionnaire (62% response rate). Respondents comprised 219 (87%) HREC members or administrators, and 33 (13%) researchers who were not HREC members. Researchers generally had a less positive attitude to the HREC process than did HREC members. Researchers were less likely to believe that HRECs: make clear and reasonable decisions in an acceptable timeframe; provide informal guidance to researchers; and have the necessary expertise to make appropriate decisions. The largest difference related to relations between researchers and HRECs: 82.5% of HREC members thought relations were good, but only 59.3% of researchers held this view. Despite these differences, both HREC members and researchers held the view that the ethics review process in Australia is working well.

Conclusion

Although our study suggests that both HREC members and researchers are satisfied with the process of human research ethics review in Australia, there are areas of concern that merit further investigation. These include the timeliness and clarity of HREC decisions, the methodological expertise available to HRECs and the basis for HREC decisions.