 Association for the Accreditation of Human Research Protection Programs, Inc.

 announced that it has accredited another seven organizations—including its first organizations in India.

Four of the seven newly accredited organizations are outside the United States, underscoring AAHRPP's progress in moving toward one standard worldwide for protecting research participants. All told, 241 organizations have now earned accreditation, including institutions in 45 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, Canada, China, India, Korea, and Singapore.

The latest accreditations come as AAHRPP celebrates the 10th anniversary of its founding in 2001 and prepares to mark 10 years since the issuance of the first accreditation standards in 2002.

"The goal, a decade ago, was to establish an accrediting organization to strengthen research protections and improve the quality of research," said Marjorie A. Speers, PhD, AAHRPP President and CEO. "Since then, hundreds of organizations have earned the AAHRPP gold seal, demonstrating their commitment to rigorous standards that help protect research participants while ensuring that society continues to reap the benefits of research."

The newly accredited organizations are:
Creighton University, Omaha, Nebraska, USA
Diex Research Sherbrooke, Inc. & Diex Research Montreal, Inc., Sherbrooke, Quebec, Canada
IRB Services, Aurora, Ontario, Canada
Kasturba Hospital, Manipal, Manipal, India
Manipal Hospital Bangalore, Bangalore, India
Texas Health Resources, Arlington, Texas, USA
The University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa, Alabama, USA 
For these and all accredited organizations, AAHRPP accreditation translates into significant benefits for research participants and society as a whole.

Accreditation is available to United States and international organizations that conduct biomedical, behavioral or social sciences research involving human participants. The list of accredited organizations includes community and teaching hospitals; VA facilities, universities; institutional review boards; research institutes; and contract research organizations.
