Research

Welcome to the home page of the Barwon Health Research Ethics, Governance & Integrity (REGI) Unit.

Barwon Health has a vibrant research culture and enviable track record in research achievements. This research activity is supported by the REGI Unit, located in Kitchener House. The REGI Unit is an organisational unit of the Research Directorate and manages the many aspects of research compliance, research ethics applications and review processes.

The REGI team has a strong background in research ethics and management and can provide support and advice on research design, data management and analysis, and ethics applications. They also offer training for less experienced researchers.

All Barwon Health staff and associates interested in research are encouraged to drop in to meet the REGI team and get some tips for negotiating research ethics and governance.

The REGI Unit's role is to ensure that:

• Barwon Health achieves research excellence and maintains the highest standards of research integrity and research conduct
• Barwon Health research complies with national and international research ethics and governance guidelines and laws and exemplifies best practice

The REGI Unit works to achieve these aims by:

• Providing support, advice and training to experienced and novice researchers on research design, data management and analysis, ethics applications and research dissemination
• Providing support for research oversight to regional partners and collaborators
• Coordinating all aspects of research oversight and compliance for research carried out under the auspices of Barwon Health
• Coordinating and convening the Barwon Health Human Research Ethics Committee (HREC) and its associated sub-committee, the Research Review Committee
• Reviewing and managing insurance, indemnity and contract documentation associated with clinical trials

All correspondence and enquiries for REGI , RGO, and HREC, should be forwarded to REGI@barwonhealth.org.au.

Important updates 

Ethics application submissions: Ethics Review Manager (ERM) has now gone live. All researchers are required to submit their ethics application through ERM as Online Forms has now been archived. Existing users of Online Forms will be able to access ERM with their usual Online Forms login details.

ERM is a paperless information management system for completion, submission and storage of documentation for:

- Human Research Ethics Application (HREA)
- Victorian Specific Module (VSM)
- Site Specific Assessment (SSA) form
- Victorian Low and Negligible Risk (LNR VIC) form
- All post approval forms (e.g. amendments, progress reports, safety reports etc)

Information on ERM can be accessed here along with a troubleshooting guide here. For technical assistance, please email the Infonetica helpdesk: helpdesk@infonetica.net.