Mandated Training for Scientific Staff Working in NIH Facilities

NIH offers a wide variety of training opportunities to its scientific staff. Regulations and policies require that all scientific staff take certain specific training courses, as well as others determined by your areas of research. All required courses listed below should be completed within 2 months of your arrival at the NIH. Please view the NIH Mandatory Training Inventory (MTI) site for additional training requirements.

Required Training Courses (required of all scientific staff)

• NIH Orientation Course (FTEs Only) – Required for all employees who begin at NIH for the first time after September 1, 2003. You are required to go to orientation on your Entry on Duty (EOD) date, or first offering after EOD (First day of every pay period (Mondays, or Tuesday if Monday is a holiday).
• Introduction to Laboratory Safety (Online) – This computer-based training (CBT) introduces laboratory personnel to common hazards and exposure risks, including chemical, radiological, and biological hazards. This course is required for all non-administrative staff.
• Introduction to the Responsible Conduct of Research (This training is required for all staff who have direct and substantive involvement in proposing, performing, reviewing, or reporting research, or who receive research training) – promotes the responsible conduct of research and discourages research misconduct and questionable research practices. This must be completed within 60 days of EOD.
• Laboratory Safety at NIH (Required for all scientific staff, following completion of Introduction to Laboratory Safety) – provides additional training on the recognition and control of common physical, chemical, and biological hazards.
• New Employee Ethics Orientation – Provides an overview of ethics (standards of conduct) in the Federal Government.
  • FTEs
  • Non-FTEs
• NIH Computer Security & Privacy Awareness – The Computer Security Act requires that all government personnel and contractors who use computers as part of their official duties must receive training on computer security awareness. This training must be completed within 60 days of your arrival at NIH.
• NIH Environmental Management (NEMS) Awareness – The NEMS (environmental) awareness training, which all NIH staff must take, is designed to briefly inform them of their roles and responsibilities within the NEMS. This training reviews the NIH Environmental Policy, describes how the NEMS works, and discusses ways to reduce your impact on the environment.
• NIH Prevention of Sexual Harassment – Provides an overview of issues involved in the prevention of sexual harassment on the job.
• Protection of Human Research Subjects (Required for all research staff) – Designed to help IRP investigators understand and comply with the ethical guidelines and regulatory requirements for research involving human subjects.
• Technology Transfer Online Training [through the HHS Learning Portal (LMS) - connections to the LMS and instructions are available in the NIH Technology Transfer Training Guidance document] (Computer-based training which is required for all individuals involved in research in the NIH IRP, including but not limited to: Senior Investigators, Investigators, Senior Clinicians, Senior Scientists, Assistant Clinical Investigators, Staff Clinicians, Staff Scientists, Clinical Fellows, Research Fellows, research nurses, clinical protocol navigators, all non-FTE trainees (IRTA/CRTA/VF postdocs, pre-docs, postbaccs, all students (including summer students), contractors, and other non-FTE scientific contributors such as Special Volunteers, Guest Researchers and On-Site Collaborators) – Provides information about your rights and responsibilities regarding intellectual property and technology transfer. The IC’s LMS Administrators will be able to see all individuals who have taken the training once they have completed it, even if that is not evident to the individual. To use the course for future reference after you have accessed it once through LMS, please visit the Technology Transfer Online Training PowerPoint*. Please note that depending on your type of computer and browser, the PPT presentation may open directly or you may only get a small icon at the bottom of your screen indicating that the PPT has been downloaded and you need to click on that to open it. This is an NIH-only link.

Possibly Required Depending on Type of Research Being Carried Out

• Clinical Research Information (CRIS) – This training is only required for licensed physicians, nurse practitioners, and physician assistants who have full patient care credentials. CRIS is the computer system for electronic charting in the medical record.
• Clinical Research Training (Required for all research staff and for all clinical investigators involved with a protocol) – Introduces the ethical issues involved in human subjects research, as well as the roles and responsibilities of the principal investigator and the institution when conducting clinical research in the NIH intramural research program.
• CNS IRB Training for Investigators and Research Staff – It is strongly encouraged that anyone involved in clinical research, including principal investigators, associate investigators, clinical fellows, and clinical research support staff attend this training. You will receive an overview of the IRB review process from the CNS IRB chair and staff – what really goes on between meetings, at meetings, and behind closed doors, learn how to write and format your human subject protocol and consent form so they sail through the pre-review process, how to use IRB templates and standard language, what adverse events and violations need to be reported and how to report them, where to find guidance and regulations, etc. These 4-hour sessions are scheduled throughout the year.
• CPR – A valid CPR certificate is required for all staff with contact with human subjects or patients.
• Medical Records Training for Physician Dictation and Digital Signatures – This training is required for licensed physicians, nurse practitioners, and physician assistants with fully approved patient care credentials who wish to dictate, edit and sign off on dictated and transcribed documents using the digital signature software, document directly into the digital signature software application, and/or verify medical record reports they are being tracked as responsible for completion within established turnaround times per Clinical Center policy. Training takes between 30-90 minutes and is offered in either room 1N216 or 1N214. The dictation code, digital signature software application username and password are provided at the conclusion of the class. Contact Ron DeClerck at 301-496-2271 to schedule.
• NMR Center Safety Training – All investigators conducting research studies in the NMR Center are required to attend the Safety Training Course conducted by the NMRF staff every two years.
• Protection of Human Research Subjects (Required for all staff working with Human Subjects) – For human subjects research conducted or supported by the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), the Office for Human Research Protections (OHRP) must approve an institution’s Assurance before the funds can be awarded and human subjects research can begin.
• Radiation Safety Course (Required for all staff working with or around radioactive sources) – Provides instruction about radiation hazards and appropriate precautions.
• Universal Precautions (Required for all staff with contact with human subjects or patients) – Classes are held every other Tuesday at 9:15 a.m. in Building 10/FAES Rooms 1&2. The Departments of Labor (OSHA) and HHS require that all health care workers whose jobs entail either patient care or clinical laboratory responsibilities receive training in Universal Precautions (UP) annually. They also recommend that workers with patient contact receive training regarding tuberculosis.
• Using Animals in Intramural Research (Required for all staff working with animals) – Provides information on the organizational structure of the NIH Intramural Animal Care and Use Program as well as on current laws, regulations, and guidelines for the care and use of animals in research.
• Working Safely with HIV and Other Blood-borne Pathogens (Required for those working with blood-borne pathogens) – Addresses work practices in Biological Safety Levels 2 & 3 laboratories, common methods of blood-borne pathogen exposures, and the use of various controls to help prevent exposure.
• Working Safely with Nonhuman Primates (Required for all personnel who are scheduled to begin working with non-human primates (NHP) but have little or no experience) – The primary goal of the training is to provide information about the normal behavior of NHP that will enable personnel to avoid being bitten, scratched, or otherwise exposed to pathogens that are transmissible to humans. Consult your IC Animal Program Director or your ACUC for information on presentation dates.