Research Approvals Processes Project: May 2025 update

In April, the RAPP team completed its first set of deliverables (Initial Deliverables). These were discussed in detail in the March RAPP update.

As many are aware, this is a time of change at the Ministry of Health, as well as across the health authorities. The RAPP team remains well-positioned to advance this important project, and planning for the next phase is underway.

Researcher and VP Sessions

The RAPP team is arranging engagement sessions with the Researcher Advisory Forum and the Vice Presidents of Research at BC universities in June. These sessions will serve two purposes:

• To provide a forum for the RAPP team to update researchers and research VPs on activities over the past several months and to discuss planned activities for 2025/26;
• To provide a space to hear from researchers and research universities their priorities and advice as we move into this next phase of RAPP; and
• To give RAPP an opportunity to hear from these important partners about any other connected initiatives or activities underway.

RISE and Ethics Applications

The RAPP team is exploring the possibility of allowing all health authority ethics reviews, including single-site reviews, to be submitted through UBC’s RISE application. The opportunity is still in initial discussions and will require further consultation with health authorities and research institutions.