Congratulations to Deborah McEdward, R.D.H., B.S., CCRP, education and training coordinator II for the Dental Practice-Based Research Network, in the Department of Restorative Dental Sciences, for her recent success in becoming a Certified Clinical Research Professional (CCRP) through the Society of Clinical Research Associates.
This certification requires a minimum of three years working as a clinical research coordinator and passing a rigorous examination. This certification increases the standards of research coordinators in the College of Dentistry, while enhancing the ability of coordinators to interact with other research health professionals.
The National Commission for Certifying Agencies states that requiring certification for the research team, leads to the advancement of the clinical research profession due to subject safety, regulatory compliance, and the publics understanding of clinical trials. For employers, certification can serve several purposes from providing evidence of experience and qualifications of a research team to the FDA, or other regulatory bodies, during an inspection, to validating competency when considering a new employee. Recently, evidence has indicated that regulators believe certification reduces risk to research subjects. There are fewer errors, lower costs, more rapid turnaround, and greater safety in clinical trials when certified professionals are involved.