Ethics, Policy and Human Rights Core, HIV Center

As the HIV epidemic evolves and poses new challenges, research on gender, sexuality and HIV transmission raises a host of ethical and human rights issues that need to be addressed and explored with particular sensitivity. The Ethics Core provides a program within the HIV Center for investigators to consider, learn, and investigate critical ethical, human rights and policy issues posed by the epidemic as well as broader ethical matters related to gender and human sexuality. The Core collaborates with HIV Center-affiliated investigators to ensure that all HIV Center research upholds the highest ethical standards that govern research with human participants in the US and internationally. Further, the Core fosters empirical research on ethical and human rights dimensions of the AIDS epidemic. Finally, the Core assesses the policy and human rights implications of the Center’s work.

The Ethics Core consults on ethical, policy and human rights issues with Center investigators both prior to submission of projects to the IRB and to funders and at the conclusion of all studies before dissemination of results. The Core also undertakes broad-based education on the ethics of human subjects research. Specifically, the Core sponsors a Research Ethics Course, a conference on techniques of informed consent, an IRB apprenticeship for postdoctoral fellows, and meetings to explore new ethical challenges that emerge. The Core also educates IRB members regarding questions uniquely raised by research on gender, sexuality, and HIV. Twice yearly, the Core sponsors Policy Roundtables focused on matters of broad policy and human rights significance to the Center’s work. Through quarterly Core Research Seminars and collaboration with the International Core, Interdisciplinary Research Methods Core, and Research Capacity Development Core, the Ethics Core fosters empirical research into the ethical, human rights, and policy issues posed by human sexuality, gender, and HIV. The Core’s work is disseminated through a Website, materials developed for educational sessions, and publications.