UBC's Office of Research Ethics and the Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences are piloting a self-guided ethics screening tool designed to help researchers determine if their project requires research ethics review. Some activities do not fit under the TCPS2 definition of research yet are involved in extending existing knowledge and/or creating new knowledge. Some do not require review due to their intent and scope. Examples include quality assurance and quality improvement (QA/QI) activities, program evaluations, some Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL) activities, creative practice, and public health surveillance studies. If your project falls into one of the above categories, this tool will help you determine whether ethics review is required. In addition, the tool provides:
- A risk assessment report based on the project information you provide
- Instructions for proceeding with an ethics application, should one be required
At this time, the tool is only available for academic/behavioural applications.