Please be informed that the Clinical Research Ethics Committee (CREC) will adopt a standardized procedure in order to streamline the management of archive clinical samples. The new procedure will be effective from July 2023. Please disseminate this message to your colleagues so that they are familiar with the procedures.
In essence, two application forms will be involved:
- Transfer of access right to archive samples. After a research project is completed, if the principal investigator of the project leaves the institution, an appropriate person, generally an academic staff or a HA medical staff with specialist qualifications, to be recommended by the leaving PI and endorsed by the department chairman or COS, will need to apply for taking up the access right of the archive samples. This person will be responsible for the safekeeping and maintaining the record for the archive samples. All archive samples without a designated responsible person will be considered as obsolete and cannot be used for further research.
- Extension of the archive period for stored samples. After the archive period originally approved for the clinical samples, the principal investigator or the designated responsible person (see above) can apply for an extension of the archive period. The application form should be submitted to the CREC office between 3 to 12 months before the end of the originally approved storage period. Please note that if the period to be extended is beyond the one stated in the original patient consent, a new written consent from the patient is required.
Both application forms can be downloaded from the CREC website. Please submit the completed application forms, together with other necessary documents, to the CREC office at 8/F, Lui Che Woo Clinical Sciences Building, Prince of Wales Hospital. If you have any questions, please contact the CREC office.