Determining the Level of Statistician Participation on Canadian-Based Research Ethics Boards

The article discusses the participation of statistician participation in the Canadian-based research ethics boards (REBs). REBs are autonomous bodies whose primary role is to advance the protection or safety of human or animal subjects in medical research and to promote or foster high ethical standards for the conduct of research. Several authors have called for the involvement of a statistician on REBs. The primary role of a statistician is to provide independent advice to researchers on statistical issues shared by many research projects, with the aim of enhancing or safeguarding scientific integrity.