The Utilization Review Process and The Utilization Review Committee
at
The Research Imaging Institute
Revised: May, 2009
Jean Hardies, Ph.D.
Protocol Review Secretary
The Purpose of the Utilization Review Process
The Research Imaging Institute (RII) consists of state of the art imaging equipment, image processing equipment, a staff of experts, and an organizational structure designed to ensure that the entire center operates as a team. The RII is truly a unique and outstanding facility that can provide research opportunities for everyone in the scientific community.
The purpose of the protocol review process is to ensure that resources at the RII are used optimally. Specifically, the process ensures that :
- the scientific questions being asked are appropriate for the RII resources
- the experiments are designed to use the equipment optimally
- the data are analyzed using appropriate methods
- the RII functions cooperatively
The Utilization Review Process
The phases of the utilization review process are:
- discuss the project with the senior scientists at the RII to help in designing the project
- find a RII senior scientist to sponsor the project
- present the proposal at a Friday afternoon seminar at the RII if possible
- fill out the RII Utilization Review Form
- present the Utilization Review Form to the appropriate RII division chiefs and request sponsorship of your proposal
- submit the protocol to the protocol review secretary (currently Martha Gonzales (gonzalesmm@uthscsa.edu), 567-8191 in room 2.606 McDermott Building)
- the proposal is presented by the principal investigator at the Utilization Review Committee meeting (3rd Thursday of every month at 1:00 p.m.)
- get the protocol approved by other committees such as the Institutional Review Board (IRB), the Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC), and radiation safety
This process gradually moves from the informal to the formal. The order of steps 1-3 can be interchanged.
The format of the Friday afternoon presentation is flexible. One hour is allotted for the presentation, but the presentation need not be an hour long. The presentation can range from a formal talk with questions at the end to an interactive brain storming session.
The time it takes for a protocol to be reviewed is highly variable. Currently, the Utilization Review Committee meets monthly. The amount of time for the protocol review process is on the order of one to two weeks. However, some protocols can take longer than this. Protocols must be submitted 2 weeks prior to the meeting.
What a Protocol Should Contain
A protocol should contain all of the elements of a good scientific proposal. The scientific question should be well defined and the relevance of the question should be stated. The proposed methodology should be presented, with particular emphasis on how the resources of the RII fit into this methodology. The quantity of RII resources to be used, such as machine time, technician time etc. should be estimated. The Utilization Review Form will help you do this. The protocol should discuss funding of the project. The RII does not have money to grant for projects, but it can give grants in the form of instrument/scan time, etc. If you would like such a grant you must request it in your proposal. Finally, if the protocol has other non-scientific objectives, such as teaching, this should be stated.
Warning: Existing funding for a protocol does not insure that the protocol will be approved by the Utilization Review Committee. Please get your protocol approved by the Utilization Review Committee before you apply for funding.
Who's Who:
RII Utilization Review Committee
Peter Fox, Chairman
Jean Hardies, Secretary
Paul Jerabek
Jack Lancaster
Timothy Duong
Shalini Narayana
Duff Davis
Donald Robin
Potential Protocol Sponsors:
PET protocols
Paul Jerabek, Chief
Peter Fox
Shalini Narayana
MRI protocols
Timothy Duong, Chief
Human Electrophysiology protocols
Shalini Narayana, Chief
Peter Fox
Biomedical Imaging Analysis protocols
Jack Lancaster, Chief
Angie Laird
Human Performance
Donald Robin, Chief
Translational imaging protocols
Duff Davis, Chief
Peter Kochunov