Romeo Research Ethics Application Update

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In an effort to streamline the ethics review process for researchers and reviewers, the REB has designed new ethics applications to include questions that represent our current understanding of human research ethics and to align with the recently updated TCPS 2: 2022. The questions in the newly designed forms are more specific and are intended to reduce the back and forth between the REB and researchers, leading to a more accelerated review process.

The following applications launched August 1, 2023:

  • Psychology Ethics Application – For those who either work or study in the Faculty of Science – Psychology department
  • Non-Psychology Ethics Application – For those in all other faculties and departments
  • Secondary Use of Data Ethics Application – For applications that exclusively use data that has already been collected.

New REB Application Support

Process Changes

  • The new application form will look similar in design to the previous application form, but many questions, forms and tabs have been updated.
  • You will not be able to directly clone an old application to use after the launch of the new application form as many questions have changed. However, you can still view your old application forms and can manually copy over applicable answers if needed.

Student Processes

Principal Investigator (PI)

As of August 1, 2023, only full-time faculty, contract teaching faculty who are on an active teaching contract, adjunct faculty, or staff can be listed as Principal Investigator on ethics applications. This change ensures that we are compliant with the TCPS 2 Definition of Principal Investigator, and removes the requirement for students to attach proof of their supervisor's sign off with every application.

Students can be listed as Lead Student Investigators.

If a Romeo application is submitted with a student listed as the PI, the application will be returned for revisions.

Preparing and Editing Ethics Application

Students can still prepare an ethics application as all individuals added to a Romeo application can edit the application. While a student can start an application and edit all sections of an application, they will not be able to be listed as a PI when it comes to the final submission to the REB.

When a student generates a new Romeo application, they will be defaulted to the PI. Your supervisor will need to review and approve the application before submitting to the REB. To change the PI to a supervisor:

  1. Navigate to the Project Team Info tab of your application.
  2. Click Change PI in the top left corner of the tab.
  3. Search for a full time or contract teaching faculty member or staff member.
  4. Click Selectnext to their name.

Alternatively, a supervisor can generate the application in ROMEO and add the student as a student co-investigator or principal student investigator so that the student can fill out the remainder of the application. The final approved version must be reviewed, approved, and submitted by the PI (supervisor) in order to be reviewed by the REB. This new process will remove the requirement of students having to submit a screenshot of their supervisor’s approval with every new application.

Access to Previous Applications

All previously approved applications will be available for viewing as well as submitting modifications and progress reports/adverse events. Any application drafts that were not submitted by July 14, 2023 will be deleted from the system.