Press Releases

WCG Leads the Way and Sets a New Standard - Announcing the Formation of WCG IRB and the Launch of New WCG IRB Connexus™

Oct 23, 2020, 08:54 AM by

WCG has unified its five IRBs – Western IRB (WIRB), Copernicus Group IRB, Midlands IRB, New England IRB, and Aspire IRB – in a single brand, WCG IRB. It has also launched a new technology – WCG IRB Connexus – to support clients’ ethical review submissions and management. Further information is available on it new website at www.wcgirb.com.

WCG announced today the unification of its five industry-leading IRBs – Western IRB (WIRB), Copernicus Group IRB (CGIRB), Midlands IRB (MLIRB), New England IRB (NEIRB), and Aspire IRB – into the single WCG IRB brand. Since 2012, the organization has successfully assembled and integrated a powerful array of premiere IRBs, now synthesized into a single, industry-leading IRB. WCG IRB clients will experience a singular, unified process and revolutionary submission platform that will not only elevate the user experience but also continue to deliver gold-standard service with the highest regard to ethics and integrity.

WCG IRB is celebrating the 52^nd anniversary of the foundational pillar of its IRB offering (Western IRB) this year. But even as the company looks back on decades of leadership, no time is lost on leading the industry into the future and setting the standards for clinical research in a new era – through and beyond COVID-19.

“This is just one further example of our commitment to positively transform the clinical trial process while keeping patient safety as our highest priority,” said Donald A. Deieso, Ph.D., WCG CEO. “WCG IRB (www.wcgirb.com) is the most advanced single IRB in the world – serving biopharmaceutical companies, CROs, academic medical centers, and research institutions all of which rely on our organization to maintain the highest standards of quality, efficiency, and timeliness in all activities.”

“Under the WCG IRB banner, our clients will continue to work with the teams they know and trust – those who, for decades, have set the standard of excellence for our industry. These teams are now seamlessly connected to provide a more powerful and unified experience for our clients and partners. This step fulfills our commitment to provide an effective experience for our clients,” says Dawn Flitcraft, President of WCG’s Ethical Review Division.

This transformation includes the launch of a new technology, WCG IRB Connexus™, which supports our clients’ ethical review submissions and management. According Flitcraft, “it’s just the latest demonstration of what WCG IRB has been doing to exceed client expectations through unparalleled service and partnership.”

“By deploying state-of-the-art adaptive technology, the new WCG IRB Connexus™ supports our commitment to continuous improvement of our processes by raising the bar on transparency and compliance,” said David Forster, WCG’s Chief Compliance Officer. “And that’s our goal – to improve the submission process, eliminate and reduce errors, and thereby achieve the highest ethical standards in the board review process.

“Clients have been extremely impressed with the ease of use and visibility of the new portal,” says Flitcraft. “We took cues from the systems we all use in our daily lives that are intuitive and simple. And clients are telling us they can’t imagine ever using another IRB submission portal again now that they see how intuitive it is to use the new WCG IRB Connexus™. We’re one incredible team that now operates on a single platform that’s, quite simply, going to change the industry.”

Details of these changes are being announced this week through the WCG IRB website. “At WCG, we remain laser-focused on ensuring that our teams and technology platforms support our mission of assuring the highest ethical standards possible. Those who are working to develop new drugs and devices contribute to the mission of protecting public health, they deserve the best we can provide. For the past 52 years we have stood by their side in this mission – we will continue to do so,” Flitcraft continued.

More information about WCG IRB and the new WCG IRB Connexus™ platform is available at www.wcgirb.com.

About WCG
WCG is the world’s leading provider of solutions that measurably improve the quality and efficiency of clinical research. Comprised of two divisions, the industry’s first central IRB – now WCG IRB – and first clinical services organization, WCG enables biopharmaceutical companies, CROs, and institutions to advance the delivery of new treatments and therapies to patients, while maintaining the highest standards of human participant protection. For more information, please visit www.wcgirb.com, www.wcgclinical.com or follow us on Twitter @WCGClinical or LinkedIn.