Please join us in welcoming Dr. Christopher Ryan as the new Director of the UCSF Human Research Protection Program (HRPP).

 

Chris comes to us from the University of Pittsburgh, where he served as the Director of the Pitt IRB for more than 10 years, as well as Co-Director of the Pitt CTSI Regulatory Knowledge and Support Core. Among his many accomplishments in Pittsburgh were the creation of a strongly service-oriented IRB office, the development of a highly efficient review process for exempt and expedited studies, and the introduction of training programs focused on improving the quality of consent forms.

 

A psychologist by training (UC Berkeley), Chris has also had a very active research career, having published more than 150 papers and book chapters on the neurocognitive correlates and consequences of various medical disorders and their treatment in both children and adults. He has had extensive experience in conducting NIH-funded and pharma-sponsored clinical trials, observational and epidemiological studies, and social-behavioral research. As a researcher himself, he has a clear understanding of the many challenges faced by investigators who are attempting to negotiate the maze of regulatory requirements. His (and our) goal is having an HRPP office that is accessible and responsive to our investigators’ needs, and that operates with a very high degree of efficiency and flexibility. Chris has a long history of being a ‘hands on’ Director and looks forward to working closely with the HRPP staff and with members of our research community.