The Association for the Accreditation of Human Research Protection Programs (AAHRPP) has accredited its largest group of institutions at one time in its six-year history. In total, 16 organizations gained AAHRPP approval. The certification is valid for three years. The AAHRPP is a non-profit organization that offers accreditation to organizations that conduct or review research with humans.

“This is the largest number of accreditations we have awarded at one time and we expect the numbers to continue to grow as we see an ever-expanding list of applicants, said Marjorie Speers, Ph.D., executive director of AAHRPP.

The list of hospitals or health systems that received full accreditation includes the Cincinnati Children’s Hospital, The MetroHealth System in Cleveland, Ohio and the University Hospitals Case Medical Center in Cleveland. Among the list of universities were: University of Cincinnati, University of Kentucky, University of Utah, University of Rochester, University of Southern California, and the Virginia Commonwealth University.

Three Veterans Administration facilities were granted full accreditation, including Cincinnati Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center, the Department of Veterans Affairs Salt Lake City Health Care System, the Veterans Affairs Pacific Islands Health Care System in Honolulu; VA Palo Alto Health Care System and  Veterans Affairs Healthcare Network Upstate New York at Albany. Austin, Texas-based IntegReview Ethical Review Board also received full certification.

Lexington VA Medical Center received qualified accreditation, which means it met the standards with only a few minor deficiencies in administrative processes, not involving patient care. It will still be accredited for three years and if these deficiencies are corrected within that time, the institution will receive full accreditation status.

“This is a very exciting time for these organizations and for AAHRPP. Not only is it a significant achievement for these institutions, but accreditation is critical for the public’s trust in research,” added Speers.

AAHRPP has accredited 68 organizations since 2001 and is currently working on nearly 400 new accreditation assessments.