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The Australasian Human Research Ethics Consultancy Services (AHRECS) team brings extensive experience and expertise to support your research ethics needs. We have collaborated with research ethics committees, regulatory bodies, and professional organisations across Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, and Vietnam, ensuring compliance with international standards, including US OHRPP and ORI requirements.
Our team combines a deep theoretical understanding with a practical knowledge of regulatory frameworks. With over 20 years of collective experience, our senior consultants excel in implementing best practices in research ethics training, systems, and reforms. By partnering with AHRECS, you gain access to trusted advisors who can help you navigate complex requirements, enhance your systems, and ensure ethical excellence in your research practices.
Latest blog entries
Self-plagiarism? When re-purposing text may be ethically justifiable
In an institutional environment where researchers may be coming under increasing pressure to publish, the temptations to take short cuts and engage in duplicate or redundant publication can be significant. Duplicate publication involves re-publishing substantially the same data, analysis, discussion and conclusion without providing proper acknowledgement or justification for the practice. Such behaviour is often…
REAlising a collegiate Research Ethics Adviser network
By Dr Gary Allen| Senior Consultant AHRECS| gary.allen@ahrecs.com Dr Mark Israel| Senior Consultant AHRECS| mark.israel@ahrecs.com Our research ethics consultancy activity in recent years has involved us working with a broad range of research institutions. Despite diversity in size, budget, age, geographical reach and mission, in some respects institutions face similar challenges, frustrations and risks. In…
Australia Day honours recognise contributions to human research ethics
We wish to add our congratulations to two recipients of honours on Australia Day who have made important contributions to human research ethics in Australia over the last 35 years. Distinguished Prof. Don Chalmers was chair of the Australian Health Ethics Committee (AHEC) from 1994 to 2000. During this time he, together with Regis Mary Dunne…
The Ethics of Evaluation Research
Evaluation research is used to assess the value of such things as services, interventions, and policies. The term ‘evaluation research’ makes it seem homogeneous but in fact evaluation research draws on a range of theoretical perspectives and a wide variety of quantitative and qualitative methods. However, there are three things evaluation research usually does that…
Sage Methods Minute. January Spotlight: Research Ethics
January’s Methods Minutes, a monthly newsletter produced by Sage Publishing, is a special issue focused on social research ethics. It reviews two articles and one book from Sage’s extensive collection on research ethics and also links to an article by Janet Salmons on the importance of research ethics in an ethics-challenged world. Finally, it introduces a…
Conducting research with (not on) consumers in health – exploring ethical considerations
Authors: Joan Carlini,1 Kristen Ranse,2 Noela Baglot,3 and Laurie Grealish2 1. Griffith Business School, Griffith University, Southport campus, Queensland. Email: J.Carlini@Griffith.edu.au. 2. Menzies Health Institute Queensland and School of Nursing & Midwifery, Griffith University and Nursing & Midwifery Education and Research Unit, Gold Coast Health. 3. Health service consumer. Growing healthcare demands and limited resources raises concerns…
We’re working with a talented animator
Gary Allen, Mark Israel, Colin Thomson We are pretty excited to be working with an animation company on a couple of projects. Attached is an animation we commissioned that we will be using at the opening of our workshops and events. Please let us know what you think of it. https://ahrecs.com/our-services https://www.patreon.com/ahrecs Drop us a…
Institutional approaches to evaluative practice
Gary Allen, Mark Israel and Colin Thomson In 2001, the NHMRC published its policy document When does Quality Assurance in Health Care Require Independent Ethical Review? The document was rescinded in 2007 and is no longer available since the update to the NHMRC website in 2018. Several changes led to the rescinding of the 2001 policy…
Why do we need Category D appointments on HRECs and how should we find suitable people?
Judith C S Redman The compulsory presence of the Category D members on Australian Human Research Ethics Committees (HRECs) can be controversial. Category D used to be termed ‘minister of religion’ and most HRECs recruited ordained Christian ministers to fill these roles, although at least one of the Monash University HREC Category D members has…
Interest in ‘self-plagiarism’
Mark Israel Mark Israel’s article in Research Ethics Monthly on ‘Self-plagiarism?’ has been receiving a little interest outside Australia and New Zealand. It was reposted by the LSE Impact of Social Sciences Blog, and listed by Retraction Watch. Given that it offered guidance on the ethics of republishing in another language, it was nice to hear that…
Kua hinga te tōtara i Te Waonui-a-Tāne, the tōtara tree has fallen in Tāne’s great forest
It is with great sorrow that we note the passing of one of our consultants, Barry Smith. Of Te Rarawa and Ngāti Kahu descent, Barry was an extraordinary man. A true kaumatua, his wit and wisdom on matters of indigenous health and indigenous research ethics is irreplaceable. Showcasing the best of the leadership through humility,…
Travelling Consultants and Professional Development Roadshows
Prof. Mark Israel plans to be in CANBERRA (2-3 April), SYDNEY (8-10 May), UK and Belgium (27 May-8 June), MELBOURNE (13 June) and Perth (22-26 April, 1-5 July) should any universities, health services or research organisations wish to meet to discuss their research ethics or research integrity needs with an AHRECS Senior Consultant. Prof. Colin Thomson plans to be in CANBERRA (8-10 April), BRISBANE (30…
Reflections on chairing a human research ethics committee
Prof Colin Thomson AM Chairing an HREC can be complicated, demanding, stressful and tiring but also stimulating, rewarding, satisfying and hugely enjoyable. In this article, I reflect on my experience of being a chair of four HRECs in universities, public health organisations and public sector agencies. Of course I accept, from watching a number of…
Requesting your input
We’re preparing to work on a new version of the subscribers’ area, so we’d appreciate hearing your thoughts and ideas. Some of you have told us you’d like to subscribe, but your institution’s accounting rules don’t allow for open ended online subscriptions. Some subscribers have told us that it would be helpful if the listed…
Tracing the Patterns of Research Ethics Regulation in Taiwan
台灣的研究倫理規範之發展 甘偵蓉 Gan Zhen-Rong1 and 馬克·伊瑟利 Mark Israel2 Many commentators on research ethics have been based in the Global North and, when we find research ethics regulations that look very much like our own, we tend to make assumptions about the ways in which these patterns of regulation have unfolded. Apart from being disrespectful to…
Monitoring research is too important to be optional and too resource intensive to be manual
Dr Gary Allen, Senior consultant AHRECS | Profile | gary.allen@ahrecs.com The National Statement specifies researchers submitting self-completed ethical conduct reports as the minimum acceptable institutional monitoring of approved human research projects (NS 5.5.5). This reflects the importance of institutions monitoring the research conducted under its auspices and highlights the ethical responsibilities of researchers, and the host…
A call for a national inquiry into the burden of research ethics and governance
Adrian Barnett, Queensland University of Technology . Do we need a national inquiry into the burden of research ethics and governance in health and medical research Australia? Many Australian researchers would cry “yes!” because they have repeatedly experienced application systems that are time-consuming and illogical. I have never met a researcher who did not think…
Complainant anonymity in misconduct proceedings depends on the forum
Prof. Colin Thomson AM, Senior Consultant, AHRECS This news item, while identifying the fact that the decision relates to court proceedings and not to university processes, leaves out some informative facts. Two members of the La Trobe academic staff lodged complaints about bullying by Professor Keyzer, whom the university suspended. In turn, Professor Keyzer commenced proceedings…
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