True or False: Institutions may rely on external IRBs to review their research.

The statement that institutions may rely on external Institutional Review Boards (IRBs) to review their research is true. This practice is known as "IRB reliance" or "IRB sharing," where an institution can defer its ethical review responsibilities to an external IRB. This can be beneficial for institutions that may not have the necessary resources or expertise to conduct a thorough review themselves, or when speed is essential for research timelines.

Using an external IRB can help streamline the review process, particularly for multi-site studies, where having a single IRB manage the review can reduce redundancy and variability in the approval process across different institutions. The reliance on an external IRB is recognized by federal regulations and is common practice in the research community, allowing institutions to collaborate and efficiently manage their ethics oversight responsibilities.

While there are circumstances where specific institutional policies or federal regulations may dictate the conditions under which external IRBs can be utilized, ultimately, the general framework supports institutions in using external IRBs when appropriate.