PARTNERS HUMAN RESEARCH COMMITTEE
116 Huntington Ave, Boston, MA 02116
Tel: 617-424-4100, Fax: 617-424-4199
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CITI TRAINING PROGRAM

  • CITI Training
  • Training Lookup
  • FAQ

Partners Human Subject Protection Training Requirements

All employees or agents of BWH/F and MGH are required to complete the Collaborative Institutional Training Initiative (CITI) Basic Biomedical Research Investigators and Key Personnel or Basic Social & Behavioral Research Course before they participate in the conduct of human subject research and a refresher course every 3 years to continue to participate in the conduct of the research. The CITI courses are comprehensive and provide case-based learning of ethical concepts and regulations in a web-based learning environment. CMEs for completion of the CITI program are available. Details are available on the CITI web site.


Software Requirements:
The CITI web site is best viewed with Microsoft Internet Explorer ver. 6.0 or later or Firefox ver. 2.0 or later
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BASIC Course
Completion of the CITI Basic course takes approximately 4-6 hours, however it need not be completed at one time. IMPORTANT: Do not take the Basic Good Clinical Practice (GCP) Course or Basic Responsible Conduct of Research (RCR) Course. These will not be applied towards the training requirement and you will be asked to complete the Basic Biomedical or Basic Social & Behavioral Research Course.

Directions -CITI BASIC course as first-time CITI user


REFRESHER Course

Completion of a CITI Refresher course takes approximately 1-hour, however it need not be completed at one time. IMPORTANT: If you take a REFRESHER course without having previously completed the BASIC course, the REFRESHER course will not be applied towards the training requirement and you will be asked to complete the BASIC course.

Directions -CITI REFRESHER course as a RETURNING CITI user


Documentation of Course Completion in Insight
The Human Research Office enters CITI courses completed by BWH and MGH learners in Insight the day after the course is completed. Please make sure that your Partners user name is listed in your CITI profile by clicking the ‘Update my profile’ link. This ensures that your CITI completion reports are always entered in the correct record. IMPORTANT: Anyone who has taken CITI through a collaborating institution, such as Dana Farber Cancer Institute, Beth Israel Deaconess Hospital, Boston Children’s Hospital, or Harvard School of Public Health, must submit a copy of their completion report to the PHS CITI Program mailbox to have their Insight record updated. The PHS CITI Program mailbox is checked daily Monday through Friday.


Questions
If you have any questions about the human subject protection training requirements, please email the PHS CITI Program mailbox at citiprogram@partners.org or 617-424-4104.

 

TRAINING LOOKUP

Insight Training Lookup

The Insight Research Portal now includes a Training Lookup feature that allows Insight users to search by investigator/study staff person’s name and training type (IRB, IACUC, IBC, RCR, COI) or by protocol number or agreement proposal number. The Training Look Up is available to everyone with access to Insight. In addition, for users of the Insight Humans module, CITI training completion dates for study staff also display on the Staff & Access page of every human protocol. You may also login directly to the CITI web site (see FAQs on next tab) and view your last completion date.

DFCI Researchers

DFCI maintains a list of researchers that completed CITI courses through DFCI. The training link below is a list of those completions. To search, open the file and use the Ctrl + F keyboard commands.


Questions
If you have any questions about the human subject protection training requirements, please email the PHS CITI Program mailbox at citiprogram@partners.org or 617-424-4104.

 
CITI FAQ

I need a copy of my CITI Completion Report/Certificate. How can I get one?

  1. Log in to the CITI web site
  2. From the Main Menu, click the name of the institution through which you completed the course
  3. Click the option ‘View Previously Completed Coursework'
  4. Click 'View' in the Completion Report column of the course for which you need a copy of your completion report
  5. In the Tool Bar, click drop down arrow next to Convert
  6. Select 'Print Web Page' to print a copy of the completion report or 'Convert Web Page to PDF' to save a copy of the completion report to your computer.

I just moved from another institution to MGH/BWH/FH/McLean/NSMC. Can I transfer my CITI training here?

Yes

  1. Log in to the CITI site
  2. Under the Main Menu, click My Profile
  3. Click ‘Change my email address’
  4. Update preferred email to your Partners email and secondary email, if applicable
  5. Click the 'Update' button
  6. Return to Main Menu and click 'Click here to affiliate with another institution.'
  7. Click on the 'Participating Institutions' drop down and select the applicable Partners institution:
    • Brigham and Women's Hospital
    • Massachusetts General Hospital
    • McLean Hospital
    • NSMC - North Shore Medical Center
  8. Click the ‘Next’ button
  9. Enter your demographic information on the Member Information screen
  10. Email the PHS CITI Program mailbox and request to be given credit for coursework completed through another institution.
  11. The Partners CITI Administrator will log in to CITI and view the coursework you have already completed and will give you credit in Insight Admin for courses completed that are equivalent to the courses required by Partners. Your Insight Admin record will be updated to include coursework credited.

I am a non-Partners research collaborator relying on the Partners IRB for IRB review OR coming onsite to conduct research at a Partners institution. I have completed the CITI course requirements of my own institution. Do I need to complete another CITI course?

No, email a copy of the completion report to your protocol administrator (if known) or the Partners CITI Administrator.


I completed a course at a non-Partners institution. Will you accept CITI courses completed at non-Partners institutions?

The Boston area academic medical centers accept one another’s CITI completion reports. All other course completions are considered on a case-by-case basis. Contact the Partners CITI Administrator for more information.


How will I know when it’s time to take the Refresher Course?

You should receive an auto-generated email notification from the University of Miami CITI Program with the Subject line: CITI Program mail reminder 30 days and again 7 days prior to your expiration date of your completed CITI course. You can look up your completion date by:

  • Looking at the Staff & Access page of any protocol you are listed on.  The CITI course completion date appears in the Certification Date column next to the CITI Certified column.
  • Using the Training Lookup feature in Insight. See answer to next question.
  • Logging in to the CITI Program Website and clicking on View Previously Completed Coursework

Note: Completed courses are good for 3 years.


How do I find out if someone has completed the required CITI training?

The Insight Research Portal now includes a Training Lookup feature that allows Insight users to search by investigator/study staff person’s name and training type (IRB, IACUC, IBC, RCR, COI) or by protocol number or agreement proposal number. The Training Look Up is available to everyone with access to Insight. In addition, for users of the Insight Humans module, CITI training completion dates for study staff display on the Staff & Access page of every human protocol.

How will I know when my CITI training date has expired?

See above answer to look up your completion/expiration dates. You should also receive an auto-generated email notification from the University of Miami CITI Program with the Subject line: [persons' name] CITI Completion Report Has Expired 1 day after your CITI training has expired. Be sure your current primary email address listed in your CITI profile is a Partners.org or other Partners/Harvard Institution email address.