Working Abroad

Q: How do I recruit local personnel in another country to work on my project?

A: Include personnel requirements in your subcontract with the collaborating foreign institution. Your colleagues who live in the country are best equipped to hire and manage local personnel. Subcontracts are managed as high-value purchase orders and are best handled by your department's fund manager.

Q: How do I lease laboratory and clinic space and equipment?

A: Contact your colleagues at the collaborating foreign institution. They can help you work out the details and include such items as leasing and remodeling space, stocking a laboratory, and furnishing a clinic. Be sure you have planned for these expenses in your grant proposal and in your subcontract.

Q: How are information technology, videoconferencing and telecommunications services provided?

A: Ask your colleagues if these services are available at the foreign institution and/or the research location. If they are available, arrange for them in your subcontract. If not, your colleagues will be able to suggest alternatives.

Q: How will expenses be reimbursed?

A: If you have made arrangements with Procurement and Contracts to set up a subcontract with the collaborating institution, receipts for work-related expenses can be submitted to the institution’s business office. That office will reimburse you or your staff and bill your department at UC San Diego for the expenses. Your department Business Office will work with UC San Diego Disbursements to wire funds to the collaborating institution.

Q: Do physicians need to be licensed in the country in which they practice medicine, even if they are only doing research?

A: Your international collaborators can advise you on local licensing requirements for physicians, nurses, and other clinical and laboratory staff.

Q: How are physicians practicing medicine in the context of an international clinical trial protected against malpractice law suits?

A: Your international colleagues will need to obtain approval from their institution’s IRB and send you a copy of the approval letter before you can submit your own application here. In some cases, the UC San Diego IRB will accept the use of indemnification clauses taken from the international site’s informed consent. In other cases, the standard UC San Diego harm clause language must be removed from the consent form, which means a statement cannot be added to release UC San Diego from malpractice lawsuits. In the event of injury or other adverse event, report the event to the UC San Diego IRB and international IRBs as soon as possible to ensure that treatment, and/or compensation for injury will be available if allowed and possible.

If you are concerned about the possibility of malpractice suits, mention this issue in the cover letter to your initial UC San Diego IRB submission and wait for a response.