BBMRI-ERIC and BBMRI.at discussed informed consent in joint workshop
The internal workshop, hosted by BBMRI.at partner University of Vienna (UNIVIE), focused on the discussion of a participant information leaflet and informed consent (IC) form developed by BBMRI-ERIC for use in a biobanking setting. The workshop brought together BBMRI-ERIC team members and BBMRI.at partners to exchange on current informed consent practices.
Joint workshop on informed consent
In biobanking, informed consent plays an important role in meeting legal and ethical requirements for the collection and use of biological samples and associated data.
On 8 September, an internal workshop – hosted by the University of Vienna (UNIVIE) – brought together BBMRI.at partners and members of the BBMRI-ERIC team to discuss informed consent (IC) in biobanking The workshop focused on a participant information leaflet and informed consent form developed by BBMRI-ERIC particularly for pupation-based cohorts.
Combining legal, ethical and practical perspectives
A key focus of the workshop was how consent documents can be made understandable and accessible to a broad range of participants. Discussions covered the language and structure of the documents, as well as the legal, ethical and technical information needed to support genuinely informed and autonomous decisions.
BBMRI-ERIC’s Ethical, Legal and Social Issues (ELSI) team has longstanding expertise in informed consent through its publications, training activities and support services. BBMRI.at partners contributed their practical perspectives.  brought in their practical view. The workshop also built on the close cooperation between the BBMRI-ERIC ELSI Helpdesk and the BBMRI.at Legal Helpdesk, managed by UNIVIE’s Department of Innovation and Digitalisation in Law (ID Law).
BBMRI.at’s contribution
BBMRI.at has a longstanding commitment to developing and strengthening informed consent practices in Austrian biobanks. Through the work of its partner biobanks and ID Law at UNIVIE, BBMRI.at has contributed to discussions on emerging challenges, including broad consent and the secondary use of health data under the European Health Data Space (EHDS). This includes the workshop Secondary Use of Data under the EHDS and Biobanking – What Is the Role and Impact of Broad Consent? The Austrian Case.
The current workshop on IC provided an opportunity to continue this exchange and bring together European and Austrian perspectives on informed consent in biobanking.
