About the BRC
The Bioethics Research Center (BRC) is a unit of the Division of General and Medical Sciences in the Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis. The BRC was initially established in 2008 as a core of the Institute for Clinical and Translational Science with a focus on clinical research ethics and the responsible conduct of research. Today, the BRC’s mission has grown to include research and training opportunities focused on the clinical practice of medicine.
Helping Clinicians and Researchers Answer Ethical Questions Using Data
Ethical questions arise on a daily basis in clinical practice and research: Can we get informed consent from a patient with cognitive impairments? How can we ensure a new business relationship will not compromise professional judgment? What steps can we take to protect the integrity of complex, collaborative research projects? Such important ethical questions cannot be answered well without empirical data.
BRC faculty have numerous ongoing research, training, and scholarly projects funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the US Office of Research Integrity, private foundations, and Washington University.
Partnerships
BRC accomplishes its research and training mission through collaboration with diverse units within Washington University and neighboring institutions. Current research collaborations exist with the Knight Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center, Department of Psychology and Brain Sciences, Washington University Dissemination and Implementation Research Group (WUNDIR), Division of Population Health Sciences, McDonnell Genome Institute, and Genome Technology Access Core. BRC’s educational programs involve collaborations with the Clinical Research Training Center and Interdisciplinary Bioethics Network at Washington University and Bander Center for Medical Business Ethics at Saint Louis University.
To learn more about BRC, please browse our Personnel, Education, Consultations, and affiliated lab pages.
Support
BRC’s work is supported by several sources:
- Research and training grants from the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the US Office of Research Integrity, and private foundations
- Gifts from foundations and donors. We are grateful to the BF Charitable Foundation for establishing the Steven J. Bander Professorship in Medical Ethics and Professionalism, and to David Bisno for establishing the Daniel Bisno Ethics in Medical Practice Fund
To learn about ways of supporting the mission of BRC, please visit our giving page.