WIRB-Copernicus Group Experts to Speak at CenterWatch Optimizing Clinical Research Conference

PRINCETON, N.J., Oct. 15, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- The WIRB-Copernicus Group ("WCG"), the world's largest provider of regulatory and ethical review services for clinical research, announced its participation at the CenterWatch Inaugural Forum on Optimizing Clinical Research Performance, to be held in Las Vegas from October 16-18, 2013. WCG is a Platinum sponsor of the CenterWatch conference.

(Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20130403/PH88307LOGO)

Donald A. Deieso, Ph.D., Executive Chairman of the WIRB-Copernicus Group, will give the keynote luncheon presentation – "Advances in Medicine Are Creating Unprecedented Ethical Considerations – The IRB As Arbiter" – on Thursday, October 17, 2013. In this presentation, Dr. Deieso will examine the key role that Institutional Reviews Boards ("IRBs") play in maintaining ethical standards amidst a series of new ethical challenges.

Other WCG speakers at the conference will include Lindsay McNair, M.D., M.P.H., M.S.B., Chief Clinical Research Officer at WCG, and David Forster, J.D., M.A., Chief Compliance Officer at WCG. Dr. McNair will present with Susan C. Buskirk, M.S., Assistant Vice President of Human Research Integrity and Compliance for the University of Maryland, on a panel entitled "Simplifying Protocol Design and Determining Protocol Feasibility" on Wednesday, October 16, 2013.  Dr. Forster will present with Jeri Barney, M.S., J.D., Human Research Protection Program Compliance Manager for Yale University, on a panel entitled "IRB Response to Key Changes in Clinical Research Practice" on Thursday, October 17, 2013.

"We are very excited to be part of the CenterWatch 2013 conference and welcome the opportunity to share best practices in clinical research performance with other leaders in the healthcare space," said Dr. Deieso. "WCG believes strongly in the importance of intellectual collaboration among healthcare professionals, and that is why we are a sponsor of this conference."

WCG will be joined at its booth at the CenterWatch conference by Mytrus, Inc., a pioneer in virtual clinical trials and technologies that improve clinical trial efficiency. Mytrus has been WCG's e-consent partner since May 2013 and recently won Frost & Sullivan's prestigious clinical trials product leadership award for their pioneering electronic informed consent application.

About The WIRB-Copernicus Group
Transforming Ethical Review

The WIRB-Copernicus Group (WCG) is the world's largest provider of regulatory and ethical review services for human research. With eight individual AAHRPP-accredited panels, over 100 experienced board members, and over 60 years of combined experience in protocol and study-related review, the WIRB-Copernicus Group brings more expertise to the industry than any other ethical solutions provider.

Members of the WIRB-Copernicus Group family of companies include Western Institutional Review Board (WIRB) and Copernicus Group IRB (CGIRB), the nation's leading independent institutional review boards, and IRBNet, the top research compliance software supporting institutions. It is the mission of the WIRB-Copernicus Group to meet the highest standards of ethics and science, and to ensure the safety and welfare of research subjects worldwide. For more information, please visit www.wcgirb.com.

SOURCE WIRB-Copernicus Group