517 The Development of New Institutional Policies on Mitigating Unacceptable Behavior and Managing Disruptive Research Participants

Abstract

OBJECTIVES/GOALS: In a 2022 NASEM Report, “… successful inclusion of underrepresented populations in research is investing in diverse research teams to enhance congruence and to optimize recruitment and retention success.” Thus, academic research institutions must provide safe, respectful and inclusive work environments to support diverse research teams. METHODS/STUDY POPULATION: Resources, policies and protocols related to disruptive research participants have not been well articulated at our institution. Given this dearth of information, we launched a new initiative across our CTSA, IRB, Office of General Counsel and Department of Population Health. The multipronged approach includes: 1) Conduct a scoping review of published and gray literature to identify best practices, trainings and resources to mitigate discrimination, harassment of research team members; 2) Co-develop new institutional policies and procedures to ensure safety and respect for both research staff and participants; 3) Develop an online training on research team field and workplace safety; and 4) Widely disseminate policies and resources to address the overall gap in academic research. RESULTS/ANTICIPATED RESULTS: Our ongoing scoping review has shown that here is an overall lack of information on bias, discrimination and harassment perpetrated by research participants towards research teams. Based on our activities, new Human Research Protection policies were launched. These include defining what disruptive participant behavior in research is, the introduction of a Statement on the Conduct of Participants in Research Studies, and steps study teams may implement to manage disruptive behavior initiated by a research participate. Next steps include the development of training resources for study teams on the new policies and to introduce de-escalation and situational awareness strategies and trainings. DISCUSSION/SIGNIFICANCE: As research teams become increasingly diverse, there is a need to better support them and ensure that the research field and work settings are safe, inclusive environments with articulated policies that mitigate/prevent discrimination, bias and harassment perpetrated by study participants.