Here is a personal view of the rigmarole I have been experiencing as a PhD student applying for local Research and Development (R&D) approval to conduct my relatively low-risk study. The very mention of ‘ethics’ and ‘R&D’ elicits sighs all round from the PhD office and this is not without good reason. I, for one, have found the application system complex, inconsistent and at times, rather discouraging.
Since 2008, an online Integrated Research Application System (IRAS) has been in operation for the purpose of seeking ethical approval nationally and facilitating local research governance approval. The creation of IRAS followed a Department of Health advisory group report calling for a streamlined ethics application system.1 My first challenge on embarking on this supposedly simpler process was navigating my way around the National Research Ethics Service (NRES) website and its obvious penchant for acronyms.
Once I knew my CAS from my SSA, I faced the 70-question ethics form. The nature of …