The Association for the Accreditation of Human Research Protection Programs (AAHRPP) has awarded five organizations with full accreditation.

Setting new milestones, in its tenth year, AAHRPP has accredited its first organization in China, first psychiatric hospital and first federal central IRB. The list also includes two top medical colleges and teaching hospital.

The following were accredited: Beijing YouAn Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing, China; McLean Hospital, Belmont, Mass.; Mount Sinai School of Medicine and The Mount Sinai Hospital, New York, N.Y.; The Medical College of Wisconsin and Froedtert Memorial Lutheran Hospital, Milwaukee, Wis.; and Veterans Health Administration Central Office Human Research Protections Program, Washington, D.C.

"We are pleased to accredit our first human research protection program at the Beijing YouAn Hospital, Capital Medical University," said Marjorie A. Speers, Ph.D., president and CEO, AAHRPP. “With China's rapid expansion into clinical trial research we are confident that Beijing YouAn Hospital, Capital Medical University will lead the way for other Chinese institutions to put human safety and wellbeing first by becoming accredited.”

The Veterans Health Administration Central Office Human Research Protections Program is a federal central IRB that reviews multi-site studies funded by the VA and conducted at local VA facilities.  

Through the rigorous accreditation process, organizations must demonstrate that they have built extensive safeguards into every level of their research operation and that they adhere to the highest standards for research. The accreditation process typically results in system-wide improvements that enhance protections for research participants and promote high-quality research.  Accreditation is available to organizations worldwide that conduct biomedical, behavioral or social sciences research involving human participants. Decisions on accreditation are announced quarterly, and accreditation is valid for three years.

AAHRPP is a nonprofit organization that works with organizations that conduct human research to raise the level of protection for research participants. AAHRPP accredits organizations that can demonstrate they provide participant safeguards that surpass the threshold of U.S. federal requirements. The accreditation program uses a voluntary, peer-driven, educational model.