Research Ethics Committee: Human (REC-H)

Kindly note that the dates below are the REC-H meeting dates. Please refer to your faculty administration for FPGSC meeting dates.

Any submission received by REC-H after the agenda closing date will only serve at the REC-H meeting following the one for which the agenda closing date is applicable. Researchers are advised to consider the timing and process associated with the particular ethics review procedure for their home faculty and are advised to engage with their faculty administration timeously to determine such timing and process constraints.

Researchers of studies making use of human participants are advised to familiarise themselves with these documents prior to the completion and submission of an application form. Failure to do so might result in a delay in the review and approval of the application.

• REC-H Terms of Reference: This document defines the purpose, structure, scope and limitations of REC-H.
• REC-H Standard Operating Procedures: This document serves as a guide for all stakeholders (researchers and reviewers, amongst others) to achieve efficiency, quality output and uniformity of performance in the carrying out of their tasks in the context of research with human participants.
• Department of Health Research Ethics Guidelines (2015): This document provides the minimum national benchmark of norms and standards for conducting responsible and ethical research.
• The Belmont Report: This report propagates the 3 ethics principles of beneficence, justice and respect for persons. The purpose of the report is to protect subjects and participants in research studies.
• Summary of Protection of Personal Information Act (POPIA): This document summarises the most important aspects of the Protection of Personal Information Act, a legal requirement for all studies collecting personal data from human participants.
• Nelson Mandela University Code of Conduct for Researchers: This policy gives expression to the values that apply at the Nelson Mandela University and to which all researchers (students, academic and support staff) commit themselves in their research activities.
• Nelson Mandela University Research Ethics Policy: This policy aims to promote awareness of fundamental ethical standards, principles and practices when conducting research with human participants.

Depending upon the context of the study, researchers of studies making use of human participants might have a need to familiarise themselves with and/or reference a selection of these documents, not necessarily an exhaustive list.

• Declaration of Helsinki, 2013: The World Medical Association's statement of ethical principles for medical research involving human subjects, including research on identifiable human material and data.
• Medical Research Council: Guidelines on Ethics for Medical Research: HIV Preventive Vaccine Research   
• South African Medical Research Council (SAMRC) Research Ethics Policy
• Regulations Defining the Scope of the Profession of Psychology (Department of Health, Government Notice, 16 September 2008)
• The Singapore Statement on Research Integrity: The principles and professional responsibilities that are fundamental to the integrity of research.
• Human Heredity and Health in Africa (H3Africa) Initiative: The H3Africa Initiative aims to facilitate a contemporary approach to the study of genomics and and environmental determinants of common diseases with the goal of improving the health of African populations.

Newsletter/Articles/Guidelines:

• Guidelines for Technology-Based Assessment: Provides guidance and best practices for the design, delivery, scoring, and use of digital assessments, while ensuring the validity, fairness, accessibility, security, and privacy of such assessments.
• NHREC Newsletter (May 2022): The focus of this newsletter is: "How your health and safety is protected when you participate in vaccine and other research in South Africa".
• SOTL – guidelines for ethical best practices: Guidelines include aspects such as how to address the power relation in SoTL research, important aspects of informed consent and the process, autonomy to choose freely to participate or not, selection of participants, benefits and risk ratio, protecting participants and the integrity of the research as well as safeguarding data.
• Major Incidents and Research, including Public Health Emergencies: Department of Health draft guidelines with a specific focus on conducting research in a pandemic
• A Guide to Planning, Preparing for, and Conducting Fieldwork in the Context of COVID-19: The purpose of this guide is to identify and minimise potential risks associated with university-related fieldwork, including internships and placements, conducted by university faculty, staff or students off-campus to prevent the transmission of COVID-19.
• Conducting Qualitative Research during a Period of Lockdown and Social Distancing: A document to assist both qualitative researchers and research ethics councils by Prof Minrie Greeff, North-West University.
• Ethical Guidelines Regarding Online Data Collection: A Memo from NMU REC-H (2020) outlining ethical aspects that need to be taken into account in implementing online methods of data collection.
• Ethical Standards for Research during Public Health Emergencies: Distilling existing guidance to support COVID-19 R&D, a summary by the World Health Organization.

Research Data Management Resources:

• Educause HECVAT: The Higher Education Community Vendor Assessment Toolkit is a questionnaire framework specifically designed for higher education to measure vendor risk and is used by many South African Universities. Before a third-party solution is purchased, the solution provider can be asked to complete a HECVAT tool to confirm that information, data, and cybersecurity policies are in place to protect sensitive institutional information and constituents' PII. A useful tool is the Community Broker Index where completed assessments of companies that regularly work within Higher Education is kept.
• Create a research data mananagement plan: A template that outlines how all research data will be generated or collected, managed, stored and preserved, shared or disposed of. (UWE Bristol)
• Data Management Plan Guidelines: guidance on the best practices to creating a data management plan. (University of Surrey)
• Public Data Manaagement Plans: Public DMPs are plans created using the DMPonline service and shared publicly by their owners. They are not vetted for quality, completeness, or adherence to funder guidelines.
• WUR data management plan template + guidance: Wageningen University & Research template

Templates:

• Information and Informed Consent Form: Template that can be customised for a research study.
• Assent Form for Child Participants: Template that can be used to create an assent form for a research study involving child participants.
• Preamble Letter to Participants in a Research Study: Draft letter for participants in a research study outlining their rights.
• Request for Permission to Conduct Research in Schools: Draft letter to the Department of Education to request permission to conduct research in a school(s).
• Letter of Invitation to School Principals: Draft letter to school principals outlining the proposed research project with attached consent form for signature and return.
• Request to Conduct Research in the National Department of Basic Education: Application form to be completed and submitted to the Department of Basic Education. This form should be completed after reading The Consolidated Department of Basic Education Research Protocols, which outlines the guidelines and recommendations for researchers on processes to be followed when conducting research involving DBE officials; programmes which the DBE is directly responsible for; or national scale studies.  

 

MEOS Applicant/Supervisor User Guides:

• Applicant User Guide (ver 1.5, updated 19 Jun '23)
• Update Project (ver 1.0, published Aug '23)
• Uploading Gatekeeper Permission Letters (ver 1.0, published Aug '23)
• PRP/Supervisor User Guide (ver 1.0, published Feb '23)
• Responding to a Signature Request (ver 1.0, published 2 Jun '23)
   

MEOS How-to Video:

• Starting an ethics application (4.30 min)

Assistance with the Offline Ethics Process :

• How to do a Risk assessment (Video, duration: 4:44)
• Guideline to Completing RECH-001
• Example of a Completed Umbrella and Sub-study Application

 

For enquiries about faculty ethics processes:

Business and Economics Sciences:

• Lindie van Rensburg

Education:

• Jackie Hay

Engineering, the Built Environment and Technology:

• Bertram Haskins

Health Sciences:

• Thembeka Sdinane

Humanities:

• Hombakazi Mzingelwa

Law:

• Charlene Pieterse

Science:

• Sihle Khuzwayo

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For enquiries about the REC-H ethics process:

Imtiaz Khan (imtiaz.khan@mandela.ac.za)
Terry Adams (terry.adams@mandela.ac.za)

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For technical enquiries about the MEOS, the online system:

MEOS@mandela.ac.za

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REC-H office bearers and committee members:

Chairperson:

• Dr Dalray Gradidge

Deputy Chairperson:

• Prof Bertram Haskins

Administrative Management:

• Mr Imtiaz Khan

Secretariat:

• Ms Ursula Spies

Committee Members:

• Mr Adlai Davids
• Prof Deon Erasmus
• Dr Eileen Scheckle
• Prof Elma de Vries
• Prof Enaleen Draai
• Prof Joanne Naidoo
• Ms Natalie Tansley
• Dr Priscilla Mensah
• Prof Stephen Mago

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