In my opportunities to attend national training events and conferences, I've realized how lucky I am to work in an office full of smart, talented and driven research ethics professionals. I've always been able to turn around and talk to an office mate when a thorny regulatory issue comes up or when there's a researcher (or department full of researchers!) particularly resistant to some action that I or the IRB has taken. When I was studying for my Certified IRB Professional exam, I was able to network with a great group of other professionals looking for support over a Facebook group created by PRIM&R and that was invaluable in helping me prepare for the exam and feel less alone while doing so. I'm hoping this blog can become something valuable in the same vein - not only a place for me to discuss issues that come up in my day-to-day work, but also a place to collaborate and discuss for those IRB professionals without a local network of helpful and supportive colleagues.
I've maintained a personal blog for a few years now and love how this forum fosters conversation. I've also been an avid follower of many health and fitness blogs over the years and seen how they are able to use this format to collect and disseminate information about topics that interest people all over the world. Deep down inside, I'm an IRB-nerd. I love working in the field that I do and the challenge in operationalizing the idea of "protecting subjects" in everyday, real world situations. (Well, "real world" to me means an academic institution, so that may be a little further away from "real world" to you.) I hope that enthusiasm carries over into this blog and that it might help support that enthusiasm in others!
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