Initiate a Study
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If you are a researcher seeking access to The Royal’s Brain Imaging Centre (BIC) to conduct a study, please read and follow the detailed steps below.
To initiate your study, you must first contact Katie Dinelle, BIC Facility Manager to discuss its feasibility.
Together with our PET and MRI physicists, our PET-MRI technologist and IT staff, we will (where applicable):
Note: Pilot scans of imaging phantoms (PET/MR) or healthy control volunteers for protocol development (MRI only) may be completed before approval by the Utilization Committee.
Approval of your project by the Brain Imaging Centre’s (BIC) Utilization Committee is required before your study can begin.
Approval from the BIC Utilization Committee ensures that your research study is aligned with the scientific goals of the BIC, and that the facility has the capacity to take on your proposed project.
The process for submission to the BIC Utilization Committee is as follows:
Once your study has been approved by the Utilization Committee, you will work with the BIC team to develop and implement your imaging protocol on the scanner.
The BIC Facility Manager will prepare a research services agreement between the BIC and your home institution, for the imaging services to be provided.
This agreement will be provided to you (or to the appropriate contact at your institution) for review and signature.
Note: Signed copies of these documents must be on file prior to scheduling your first imaging session.
Approval by The Royal’s Research Ethics Board (REB) is required for all imaging studies using the Brain Imaging Centre (BIC).
Depending on the affiliation(s) of your research team, your study will be subjected to one of two types of reviews:
For further details regarding the submission process to The Royal’s REB, please contact Katie Dinelle, BIC Facility Manager.
Approval by Health Canada is required for the following types of studies:
Before your first scan can be booked, you must provide the following information to Katie Dinelle, BIC Facility Manager:
In order to work safely in The Royal's Brain Imaging Centre (BIC), members of the research team will be required to complete the following training modules:
It will take approximately two hours to complete all training modules. After your training is complete, you will be given access to the BIC to begin your study.
Please contact BIC-Booking@theroyal.ca to schedule a time to complete your training.