CATBALOGAN CITY, Philippines — Samar State University’s Institutional Human Research Ethics Committee (SSU IHREC) is one of the only three Research Ethics Committees (RECs) and the only academic institution in Region VIII to have passed the Philippine Health Research Ethics Board (PHREB) accreditation effective on July 9, 2024.
Accredited as Level 1 REC alongside the Eastern Visayas Medical Center and Eastern Visayas Health Research and Development Consortium, Dr. Rheajane A. Rosales, SSU IHREC Chairperson, recalled the journey of the unit narrating that the four-year accreditation journey of SSU IHREC started in 2020 when the University entered the rigorous process of the PHREB, the only accrediting body in health research ethics in the Philippines. The University’s application for accreditation went through countless revisions owing to the transitions in the PHREB Manuals, changes in the organizational structure, and even a total revision mid-process.
“The process is really stringent and comprehensive. At the Secretariat level alone, they thoroughly check the accuracy and completeness of documents before these are forwarded to the accreditors. The PHREB will never give an approval despite minor deficiencies. That’s why it took four years,” Dr. Rosales recounted.
The SSU REC is the unit responsible for the review and approval of the scientific merit and ethical propriety of all researches involving human participants undertaken by SSU students, faculty, and personnel. It was established by former Director, Dr. Ronald L. Orale in 2016, with pioneering members, namely Dr. Rheajane A. Rosales, Dr. Mae V. Cañal, and Dr. Gamaliel A. Baldos. Following several nomenclature changes, the unit now adapts its current name ‘Institutional Human Research Ethics Committee’ in compliance to the requirements of the PHREB during the accreditation process.
SSU IHREC’s Level 1 accreditation is valid until July 8, 2025. Within this validity period, the unit plans to focus on preparing a new application for higher-level accreditation, development of online portal to accommodate ethics review requests from non-SSU researchers, and pursuance of accreditation for animal research ethics.