Responsibility and System for Personal Data at our Faculty
RETTE is the system that gives UiB an overview of all projects where personal data is processed. The system is intended to safeguard our statutory obligations and becomes even more important with the new Health Research Act, where the researcher’s personal responsibility is limited, while research institutions assume responsibility (system responsibility) for health research.
The faculty has proposed routines to help ensure that research complies with current laws, ethical guidelines, and UiB’s responsibility as the institution accountable for research. This follow-up will take place in the RETTE system, and responsibility will be placed at the institute level, since that is where the research takes place. The head of the institute will therefore be responsible for proper implementation.
The following measures will help safeguard this responsibility:
- The institute appoints two RETTE contacts who receive training in technical use and regulations
- Technical improvement of RETTE so that f.ex REK correspondence integrate directly, including final reports
- Annual review of all projects registered in RETTE, with a short report to the faculty
- Prosjektledere som fratrer må sørge for ansvarsoverføring for prosjekter og data
- Personal data deletion plan at the completion of all RETTE projects
- DPIAs, approvals, and contracts must be stored on a server to the project leader and institute management
- A mandatory e-course will be developed for registration and follow-up of projects in RETTE
These measures will hopefully make it easier to ensure that projects are properly concluded, that responsibility is clearly assigned, and that personal data does not go astray. Ultimately, this is about public trust in research and willingness to participate in research projects.
Finally, let me thank the many scientific staff at K2 for their hard work, with no fewer than five “Centers of Excellence” applications coordinated from K2 submitted this week.