FHI Receives Award for Excellence in Human Research Protection -- December 8, 2005

Research Triangle Park, NC — Family Health International (FHI), a leader in international public health research, today received the Best Practice Award for Excellence in Human Research Protection from the Health Improvement Institute. FHI received the award for two companion publications, Research Ethics Training Curriculum for Community Representatives, and Research Ethics Training Curriculum. The annual award is given for demonstrated excellence in protecting and promoting the well-being of people who participate in research.

"The curriculum for community representatives is the first educational tool of its kind, designed to help communities contribute to planning, implementation, and dissemination stages of the research process," says Dr. Roberto Rivera, director of FHI's Office of International Research Ethics. "The curriculum reflects the organization's commitment to research designed and conducted according to the highest ethical standards. We are very proud to have won this award."

In 2004, in response to increasing worldwide evidence of the importance of involving representatives of the communities where research is conducted, FHI developed and published the Research Ethics Training Curriculum for Community Representatives. The 97-page curriculum informs community representatives, including members of research teams, community advisory boards, or research ethics committees, about general principles of research ethics such as informed consent. It also reviews the need for ethics committees, their importance, and the roles and responsibilities of community representatives in the research process. The curriculum includes easy-to-use materials, such as slides, case studies, activities, and facilitator notes, as well as an ethics training certificate from FHI's Office of International Research Ethics.

In addition to the curriculum for community representatives, FHI developed the Research Ethics Training Curriculum in 2001 to assist international scientists who conduct research that includes human participants and who want to incorporate fundamental ethical considerations in the design and implementation of their studies.

Both research ethics curricula were developed and field-tested in developing country research settings by FHI, and they are available in English, Spanish, French and Portuguese (Portuguese version for community representatives not yet online). Print and CD-ROM versions are also available. The curricula are recommended and used by numerous international organizations including the World Health Organization, the Pan American Health Organization, the National Institutes of Health, the Pan-African Bioethics Initiative, the Latin American Forum for Health Research Ethics Committees, and the Forum for Ethical Review Committees in Asia and the Western Pacific.

For more information, see our Ethics page or contact media@fhi.org.

Family Health International is dedicated to improving lives, knowledge, and understanding worldwide through a highly diversified program of research, education, and services in family health and HIV/AIDS prevention and care. Since its inception in 1971, FHI has formed partnerships with national governments and local communities in countries throughout the developing world to support lasting improvements in the health of individuals and the effectiveness of entire health systems.

The Health Improvement Institute is a US-based non-profit research and educational organization that gives national awards, conducts forums on emerging treatments, and undertakes other programs toward fulfilling its mission of enabling informed health care decision-making.