Digital Innovation and Research Ethics Consultation Service
Digital Innovation and Research Ethics Consultation Service
The Digital Innovation and Research Ethics Consultation Service (DIRECT) assists URochester researchers seeking guidance on the ethical use of AI in digital health and human subjects research applications.
Features
DIRECT provides a single point of entry for ethics support across the digital and research spectrum, with two integrated streams of consultation.
Digital Innovation Ethics
Digital innovation ethics supports projects involving health-related technologies, especially those using AI, machine learning, or novel data systems, across all phases of the project lifecycle, from design and development to deployment and post-deployment monitoring.
Research Ethics
Research ethics focus on human subject protections and helps teams navigate the ethical and regulatory dimensions of research design to ensure their protocols meet both IRB requirements and evolving best practices in research ethics.
Benefits
Our goal is not to replace or duplicate the role of the IRB, but to offer early-stage, flexible, and substantive engagement that complements institutional review processes. We support teams in identifying ethical questions, anticipating unintended consequences, and refining their approach to data use, consent, transparency, and participant protections.
We believe emerging technologies have the potential to transform care, improving quality, access, and outcomes. At the same time, these opportunities also bring new ethical challenges. Our service is designed to function as a thinking partner, grounded in both practical experience and ethical inquiry, to help research teams act responsibly in the face of innovation.
Get Started
Contact the Research Help Desk with a request for a DIRECT consultation. You can also use the contact information, below.
Resources
DIRECT Digital Ethics Checklist - This early-stage screen helps teams determine if further reflection or consultation on a number of research elements. This is an optional, self-service document.
Intro to Digital Health Ethics - a short set of audio modules and a PDF transcript that introduce some core concepts for researchers to consider when developing digital health tools.
Contact
Jonathan C. Herington, PhD
Assistant Professor, Department of Health Humanities and Bioethics; Department of Philosophy RC (Joint)
Office: (585) 273-5210
jhering2@UR.Rochester.edu
Kevin Boyd, MDiv
Associate Director of Chaplaincy Services
Kevin_Boyd@URMC.Rochester.edu