The US-based Association for the Accreditation of Human Research Protection Programs is expecting “global repercussions” after Pfizer expanded its AAHRPP recognition to cover all of the company’s Phase II to IV clinical trials.
In 2009 Pfizer became the first pharmaceutical company to earn AAHRPP accreditation for its phase I clinical research units, located in New Haven (US) Brussels (Belgium) and Singapore.
The Singapore unit is due to close later this year, though, as part of a broader R&D efficiency drive at Pfizer.
The expanded recognition was approved by the AAHRPP this month, along with accreditations for Hartford HealthCare, a healthcare network in Connecticut, US, and MaGil IRB, an independent institutional review board in Rockville, Maryland.
Raises the bar
“Thousands of Pfizer researchers worldwide are conducting research in accordance with the ‘gold standard’ for quality and ethics,” commented AAHRPP president and chief executive officer Marjorie Speers.
“That raises the bar and sets an example for other sponsors to follow.”
AAHRPP accreditation is available to US and international organisations that conduct biomedical, behavioural or social sciences research involving human participants.
Founded in 2001, the independent, non-profit accrediting body has to date accredited organizations in 46 US states as well as Canada, China, India, Korea, Singapore and Taiwan.
