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Human Research Ethics Applications and Site Authorisation
The HREC meetings are fully booked for March and April 2025, and the HREC meeting in May is also nearing capacity. Unfortunately there is no capacity to accept additional booking requests. Whilst a suggested booking deadline is state here, most applicants are booking at least 3 months, in advance, so leaving the request to the booking deadline is not advisable.
- If the application would be exempt from HREC review via the Quality Assurance and Minimal Risk Projects QA applications may be submitted at any time
- If the application has been reviewed by another HREC that holds National Mutual Acceptance accreditation, Monash Health will not duplicate review and will require an application for Site Specific Authorisation prior to commencement
- If the application requires review by the Monash Health HREC please follow the booking request instructions, bearing in mind the HREC availability Human Research Ethics Applications and Site Authorisation
Please note it is a requirement to book in new Human Research Ethics Committee applications. This is necessary so that the Research Support Services team can triage applications that may not necessitate full HREC review to an alternative pathway, and to ensure that projects are appropriately allocated to HREC A and B, depending on the type of study, participant population, etc. Monash Health provides HREC review for a number of researchers internal and external to Monash Health and will prioritise requests from a Monash Partner organisation (Monash Health, Alfred Health, Peninsula Health, Cabrini Health, Eastern Health, Epworth HealthCare and Monash University) along with Deakin University. Researchers are advised to plan ahead and book in new applications in well in advance, as places usually book up before the booking deadline.
Researchers are requested to email research@monashhealth.org with:
- Project Title
- Brief Lay Summary of the Project
- Name and Contact Details of Principal Investigator (including email address)
- ERM Project Reference (even if the application hasn’t been submitted yet, it will have been created)
- Proposed HREC Meeting Date
- List of proposed Participating Sites (e.g. Monash Health, Eastern Health, Peninsula Health, etc.)
Research Support Services will provide confirmation at least 2 weeks prior to the submission deadline if the application has been allocated to the next HREC meeting.
Unfortunately, if the application is not booked in, Research Support Services cannot guarantee it will be included in the agenda. If the cap has been reached, the application will be allocated to the next available meeting, or researchers may choose to submit to another HREC.
There is no cap on applications for Site Authorisation, Quality Assurance, or Post Approval items.
The Monash Health HREC are able to provide HREC Review for other institutions, however, Site Specific Authorisation to conduct the study at a site must still be obtained from each institution prior to the study commencing.
If a researcher already has obtained HREC review from a HREC which is both certified by the National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) under the National Certification Scheme, and is a Certified Reviewing HREC under the National Mutual Acceptance (NMA) scheme, Monash Health will not duplicate HREC review and will require an application for Site Specific Assessment (SSA) authorisation only.
In the event, that the study requires review by the Monash Health HREC and Site-Specific Authorisation at Monash Health, researchers are asked to submit both an HREC application and an application for Site-Specific Authorisation. It is requested that the application be submitted simultaneously, to allow concurrent review.