Mbarara University Launches Research Ethics Education Program

Mbarara University of Science and Technology (MUST) on 15th May 2018 launched the Mbarara University Research Ethics Education Program (MUREEP).

The program aims at supporting training and mentoring activities to foster the growth of socially and culturally sensitive research ethics knowledge and skills at MUST and the surrounding region.

It is a collaboration between MUST and Case Western Reserve University (USA) for training and mentoring Ugandan researchers to be the next generation of leaders in research ethics.

About MUREEP

Mbarara University of Science and Technology (MUST), with funding from the National Institutes of Health (NIH), is implementing the Mbarara University Research Ethics Education Program (MUREEP).

The overall goal of the MUREEP is to build multi-level research ethics capacity in Uganda. MUREEP will introduce and implement an MPH-Research Ethics degree program, the first of its kind in Uganda and the region, and provide a repertoire of short courses in research ethics to graduate students, investigators, mentors, and MUST REC, as well as those of neighbouring institutions.

Collaborators

• Case Western Reserve University (CWRU)
• Harvard University
• Moi University
• Makerere University
• Uganda National Council of Science and Technology (UNCST)

The program has the following aims:

1) Establish and implement a sustainable MPH-Research Ethics degree at MUST that will graduate 12 students over the grant period. Combining a Public Health Master’s degree with Research Ethics will result in a public health researcher with extensive knowledge in ethics and who will be competitive in the job market.

2) Offer a repertoire of short courses and capacity building activities that will train at least 525 participants in the region. The proposed program of short courses will include a focus on the ethics of genetics research and bio-banking, the first of its kind at MUST and in the region.

3) Create a critical mass of teachers and mentors for sustainable research ethics training in southwestern Uganda and provide training and support for faculty in teaching/mentoring in research ethics.

4) Strengthen the expertise of REC at MUST and other local institutions.