Dr. Nancy Trimble (right), a retired family doctor and Chair of the Central Ontario Research Ethics Board (CO-REB), along with Victoria Shelep (left), RVH Coordinator of Research & Ethics, celebrate the launch of CO-REB, a regional partnership aimed at enhancing research collaboration and increasing access to clinical research opportunities throughout Central Ontario.
Thanks to a new collaboration among hospitals in Simcoe-Muskoka and Grey-Bruce, patients in Central Ontario might soon enjoy improved access to clinical research and groundbreaking healthcare studies.
The Central Ontario Research Ethics Board (CO-REB) unites various hospitals into a common framework for reviewing and approving research that involves human participants.
This initiative aims to help community hospitals engage more effectively in clinical trials, frontline healthcare research, and innovative care projects while ensuring strict ethical and safety standards for patients are upheld.
The hospitals taking part include Royal Victoria Regional Health Centre (RVH), Brightshores Health System, Collingwood General and Marine Hospital, Georgian Bay General Hospital, and Muskoka Algonquin Healthcare.
Research Ethics Boards oversee studies involving human participants to ensure that research is conducted safely and ethically while protecting their rights, dignity, and well-being. With this new model, participating hospitals can utilize a single ethics review process for studies conducted across multiple sites.
Leaders from the hospitals believe this shared approach will cut down on duplication, reduce costs, and speed up the initiation of research projects throughout the region.
“This is an exciting step forward for hospitals, researchers, and communities across our region,” said Dr. Nancy Trimble, retired family doctor and CO-REB Chair. “When hospitals work together, we can create sustainable pathways for patients to access research opportunities closer to where they receive care.”
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The regional board builds upon RVH’s existing Research Ethics Board by expanding it into a shared governance model that supports multiple healthcare organizations.
Organizers note that this initiative addresses a persistent challenge faced by community hospitals. Although over 65 percent of hospitalized patients in Ontario receive care in these facilities, access to established research infrastructure has mostly been found in larger academic centers.
Susan Marlin, President of Clinical Trials Ontario, stated that this partnership will enhance research capabilities throughout the region.
“Community hospitals are essential to expanding Ontario’s clinical trials ecosystem but they need practical infrastructure that helps them participate efficiently and consistently,” Marlin said. “By supporting shared ethics review across community hospitals, CO-REB helps make more sites trial-ready, reduces duplication, improves study start-up efforts while maintaining strong protections for research participants.”
Organizers believe the framework is designed for future expansion so additional hospitals and healthcare teams can join the network. They hope this model will foster a more connected research environment ensuring that patients from rural areas or smaller communities have more input into shaping healthcare research tailored to local needs.
The launch of CO-REB signifies an important move toward providing residents across Central Ontario with more opportunities for participation in clinical trials and advancements in healthcare innovation right where they live.
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