Essential Research Trainings

The Collaborative Institutional Training Initiative (CITI) is the primary platform for human subjects research training at Penn and most major research institutions. Anyone listed as study personnel on a Penn IRB protocol must have completed CITI certification prior to starting research.

At Penn, the standard track for clinical/biomedical residents is the Biomedical Research course. The Social/Behavioral Research track applies to qualitative or survey-based work. If you are unsure which applies to your project, ask your mentor or IRB coordinator, or select Biomedical, which is the more common requirement.

All Penn Medicine employees and trainees, including residents, must complete HIPAA training annually. You likely completed this at the start of residency and will receive a reminder when renewal is due.

For research purposes, HIPAA training underscores the importance of handling Protected Health Information (PHI) appropriately, whether you are conducting a chart review, using an institutional database, or enrolling participants in a study.

If you are involved in a clinical trial, even peripherally as a sub-investigator reviewing data or assessing eligibility, you need GCP certification. This is an international standard for designing, conducting, recording, and reporting trials involving human subjects, and it is required by the FDA and most industry sponsors.

GCP training is available through CITI (the most commonly used option at Penn). Certain pharmaceutical sponsors may require their own GCP module in addition to CITI. Check with your principal investigator.

The NIH (National Institutes of Health) requires RCR training for trainees on T32 grants, F fellowships (F32, F31), and K awards. RCR covers research misconduct, data management, authorship, conflicts of interest, and the ethical treatment of research subjects. This will not apply to most residents during residency, but becomes relevant for those pursuing clinician-scientist pathways in fellowship.

Penn offers RCR training through CITI and in-person workshops. NIH requires a face-to-face component at least every 4 years, so online modules alone may not satisfy the requirement. Confirm specifics with your program director.

Penn requires anyone listed as an Investigator on a research proposal or IRB protocol to submit a financial conflict of interest disclosure. The term "Investigator" is defined broadly as anyone responsible for the design, conduct, or reporting of research, regardless of title or position. This means that residents named on IRB protocols are included.

Disclosures are submitted through Penn's RIA (Research Integrity and Assurance) system, which replaced the prior FIDES platform in March 2024. The disclosure must be completed prior to participating in research, and then updated at least annually and within 30 days of acquiring any new Significant Financial Interest (SFI). For most residents, the disclosure is straightforward, as significant outside financial interests are typically limited at this stage of training.