Final answer:
The answer is true; a single Institutional Review Board can be used for a research project conducted at multiple institutions if an Authorization Agreement is in place.
Step-by-step explanation:
The question relates to whether a study conducted at multiple institutions can use one Institutional Review Board (IRB) to review the research project and rely on that one IRB's review if they have an Authorization Agreement in place. The answer to this is True. Multiple research institutions can cooperate under a single IRB review when they enter into an Authorization Agreement, which allows one IRB to assume responsibility for the ethical review.
This streamlines the process and avoids redundant IRB reviews across multiple institutions. It is important that every institution involved in the research adheres to the same ethical standards and federal regulations as laid out by the governing IRB.
Institutional Review Boards are critical in ensuring that the research involving human subjects is conducted ethically and legally, offering protections such as informed consent, confidentiality, and assessment of risk versus benefit. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services regulates IRBs to oversee the safety and rights of participants in studies, while also ensuring that the research upholds high ethical standards.
Some research projects may also be subject to additional reviews if they involve specific cultures or international participants with different regulations.