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Community Partners

All individuals that work on human subject research projects must complete human subject research training. Faculty, students, or employees of UNMC, NM, CHMC, UNO, BMC, or another academic partner institution are required to take CITI training. Community partners who collaborate on research projects may complete the CIRTification program as an alternative to the CITI Program.

Who are Community Partners?

Community partners are non-academic personnel (e.g. community leaders, representatives from supporting community organizations) engaged in research requiring IRB approval. This program is specifically and only for community members collaborating on human subject research studies.

Who is NOT considered a Community Partner?

Students or staff affiliated with UNMC, NM, CHMC, UNO, BMC, or research staff affiliated with other private entities directly engaging in human subject research.

What is CIRTification?

CIRTification is a training program in human research protections created by the University of Illinois Chicago CCTS that is tailored to the unique roles of community research partners. It is interactive and relevant to the roles and responsibilities that community partners have in research projects. The program considers community partners’ limited experience with research, discusses key concepts in research ethics and responsible conduct of research in plain language, and focuses on applying knowledge to real-life scenarios. Ideally, CIRTification Online will not only teach community partners about the importance of protecting research participants, it will also empower them to be active contributors to their respective research teams.

CIRTification introduces learners to the basics of the research - the terminology, people, and methods. It reviews the history of research abuses that have informed current ethical principles, rules, and regulations.

The training program also covers standard and best practices for:

    Recruitment and informed consent Collecting and protecting data Handling changes that may arise during participant interactions Reviews the role of the Institutional Review Board in protecting the right and safety of human research participants

    What can I expect?

    The program takes about 3-4 hours total to complete and can be completed in multiple sessions. The course is currently available in English, Spanish, and Haitian Creole. The course includes audio, video, text, and interactive activities.

    Learners will complete a knowledge quiz at the end of the program and receive a date-stamped certificate of completion. Please save a copy of this certificate for your records and email a copy to IRBORA@unmc.edu.

    Online Training Instructions:

    Please follow the instructions below to enroll in CIRTification. Please select University of Nebraska Medical Center only from the list.

      Go to https://training.ccts.uic.edu/ Click “Register” in the top right-hand corner. Select “I am not from UIC”. Complete the registration form. Under “Site”, select “University of Nebraska Medical Center”. Once the form is filled in, click “Register” at the bottom of the form. Visit the Course Catalog. Information about CIRTification will appear. Click “Learn More”. Click “Enroll” to start the CIRTification course.

      Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ):

      Who can I contact for help? For assistance, place contact: Megan Berger at mberger@unmc.edu
      How long is this training valid? The training is valid for three years.
      How do I access my completion certificate? After completing the quiz at the end of the training, the option to print and save a date-stamped certificate of completion is available. If for some reason you missed this or are unable to complete this step, Megan Berger can access the completed training certificate. Email her at mberger@unmc.edu.

      CIRTification is funded through the University of Illinois at Chicago Center for Clinical and Translational Science and supported by the National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences, National Institutes of Health, through Grant UL1TR002003. We encourage mention and citation of CIRTification Online in grant proposals, conference presentations, published manuscripts, and other reporting. Suggested citation: CIRTification Online: Community Involvement in Research Training. University of Illinois at Chicago, Center for Clinical and Translational Science.

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