Research Resources

The Office of Clinical Research, Health Sciences (OCR) promotes the growth of clinical research within and across the six schools of the Health Sciences at the University of Pittsburgh. The OCR’s mission is to facilitate promotion of an interdisciplinary collaborative environment that fosters the translation of research to the community. A successful collaborative environment will increase the institution’s competitiveness for clinical and translational research initiatives, promote the development of junior clinical investigators, facilitate participant recruitment into clinical research studies, and improve health in the community by increasing access to university-based and medical system-wide clinical research. In addition, OCR provides research-related resources for participants, investigators and research staff. 

The Office offers a number of services including the Study Design and Statistical Consultation Service (including assistance with study design, data collection methods and data analyses), an Institutional Data and Safety Monitoring Board (IDSMB), and assistance in participant recruitment. In addition, OCR provides education and training resources for investigators, coordinators and other key personnel involved in clinical research. The OCR website provides information on these as well as clinical research studies currently being conducted at the University of Pittsburgh.

The Policy Office administers the policy development process, manages policy publication and catalogs, and advises on policy-related inquiries and education. On this site you can find a complete repository of current University Policies and their supporting documents. The site also provides details regarding the policy development and approval process, and useful information to help support policy development and management at the University.

The Office of Research Integrity is available to faculty, staff, and students to answer questions about the application or interpretation of research integrity standards. It also advises academic units in the planning of periodic educational sessions to alert their faculty, graduate students, and other researchers to research integrity issues. The Office of Research Integrity is responsible for coordinating and overseeing the conduct of inquiries and investigations by peer faculty groups into allegations of research misconduct and for maintaining liaison on these matters with outside agencies that sponsor research. To consult with the Research Integrity Officer or to request copies of the Research Integrity Policy (University Policy 11-01-01) or the Guidelines for Ethical Practice in Research, telephone 412-624-3007.

The Office of Research Protections (Formerly, Research Conduct and Compliance Office - RCCO) is the umbrella organization for the various offices that support the committees involved in the oversight (non-financial) of the University’s research enterprise. 

The mission of The Office of Research Protections of the University of Pittsburgh is to oversee and facilitate the conduct of ethical and regulation-compliant research through an integrated system of research review, audit and educational programs.

The Office of Research Protections consists of the following offices: 

• Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee
• Conflict of Interest (COI) Office
• Education and Compliance Office - For Human Subject Research
• Human Research Protection Office (HRPO) [Includes IRB]
• Human Stem Cell Research Oversight Office
• Institutional Biosafety Committee
• Office for Investigator-Sponsored IND and IDE Support (O3IS)
• Radiation Safety Office
• Office of Research Integrity

The Office of Research, Health Sciences (OORHS) mission supports the emerging and established research enterprises within and across the six Schools of the Health Sciences at the University of Pittsburgh. The OORHS serves the University of Pittsburgh Health Sciences community by:

• Identifying opportunities to bring investigators together for multidisciplinary research collaborations and programs
• Providing guidance and editorial assistance for multi-investigator grant applications
• Providing review and editorial assistance for grant applications prepared by Health Sciences faculty members
• Maintaining the Application Repository To Help University Researchers (ARTHUR), which includes successfully funded grant applications submitted by University of Pittsburgh researchers
• Providing “boilerplate” grant narrative text on core resources, research infrastructure, and institutional background information
• Administering the Competitive Medical Research Fund (CMRF) Program
• Compiling and disseminating funding announcements and federal and University research policy changes
• Providing guidance to new research faculty in the Schools of the Health Sciences
• Maintaining an online handbook for biomedical researchers
• Fostering the development and use of research resources and core facilities

The Office of Sponsored Programs (formerly, Office of Research), a central office reporting to the Vice Provost for Research, is charged with assisting faculty, staff, and students in their efforts to promote and secure sponsored research funding. The OR reviews, negotiates, endorses, and provides administrative oversight related to proposals and awards in accordance with all applicable laws, policies and regulations. The Director of the Office of Research serves as the designated University Officer empowered for both sponsored research activities and export control matters.

The Office of Sponsored Projects Accounting (Formerly Office of Research Accounting) is a centralized accounting office reporting to the Office of the Chief Financial Officer. The Office of Sponsored Projects Accounting is responsible for the post award management of sponsored research programs. Duties include post award accounting, financial reporting, and administration of funding from acceptance to completion of a sponsored program. To accomplish these duties, significant interactions occur between the Office of Sponsored Projects Accounting, the Office of Research, principal investigators, department administrators, central administration and representatives of federal and non-federal sponsoring agencies.

OUC is a service organization that provides advice and counsel to the University of Pittsburgh community—the Board of Trustees, the Chancellor, the administration, faculty, and staff—on legal and policy matters, involving or affecting the institution. Our talented and dedicated professionals are committed to helping the University achieve its mission by providing quality legal services in a timely, professional, and collaborative manner. 

The University of Pittsburgh Radiation Safety Office is responsible for ensuring that all sources of licensed radioactive material and ionizing radiation-producing equipment, which fall under its responsibility, are used optimally and safely. The office also ensures that these sources of ionizing radiation are used in compliance with applicable federal and state regulations and with institutional licenses. The University of Pittsburgh Radiation Safety Program covers all of the main and regional campuses in addition to UPMC Presbyterian/Shadyside, Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh of UPMC, and Magee-Womens Hospital of UPMC.

The Department of Epidemiology maintains a Recruitment Health Studies Office (RHSO). The recruitment office was established in 1989 and has provided recruitment services for more than 40 clinical trials, observational or case control studies sponsored by National Institutes of Health (NIH), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, or pharmaceutical companies. The RHSO specializes in recruiting at-risk-participants from local and tri-state populations. To date over 47,342 participants have been recruited to these studies.

The most successful recruitment method utilized by RHSO is mass mailings. With technical assistance from the Epidemiology Data Center, the RHSO manages several large computerized population based lists.  Data sources include governmental and public domain lists purchased from various commercial vendors. Mass mailings generated from these lists are used to solicit volunteers. Each mailing contains a cover letter written by the principal investigator, the promotion materials and a postage paid business-reply card or a self mailer brochure.

RHSO contracts with a 24-hour answering service which handles all incoming telephone calls. Telephone recruiters handle the incoming calls; conduct the screening interviews for study eligibility, schedule first clinic visits and provide appointment reminder postcards and phone calls.

Other recruitment methods utilized by the RHSO include placement of advertising and articles in the print and electronic media and public service announcements. The office also coordinates investigator interviews in local media (i.e. newspapers, TV and radio).

RHSO compiles daily and weekly statistics for each study and schedules and tracks outcomes, appointments completed, cancellations, and no-shows for over 800 clinic visits per month. Quality assurance for multi-center national studies is maintained by online statistical reports to coordinating centers, local weekly meetings, and national conference calls.

In addition to recruitment RHSO is currently conducting ongoing retention responsibilities.