Ciputat, FIKES Online News—The Faculty of Health Sciences (FIKES) of Syarif Hidayatullah State Islamic University (UIN) Jakarta, through the Health Research Ethics Committee (KEPK), held a Health Research Ethics Management Information System (SIM-EPK) Application Training at ADIA Suites UIN Jakarta. The training was attended by 14 people from the KEPK team and secretariat, as an accelerated step towards more transparent, fast, orderly, and measurable ethics review services.

The two-day training, held from January 22–23, 2026, was coordinated directly by the KEPK Secretary, who served as the committee chair, Dr. Minsarnawati, SKM, M.Kes. The training focused on strengthening the use of SIM-EPK as a digital tool to support the submission process, reviewer assignment, assessment, revision, and post-approval reporting in a more organized and transparent manner. This system allows for clearer workflow monitoring, more structured role allocation, and improved quality control of the review process.

The training was opened by the Dean of FIKES UIN Jakarta, Prof. Dr. apt. Zilhadia, M.Si., in his remarks emphasized the strategic importance of KEPK as a "gateway to quality" for research involving human subjects. The Dean also expressed his hope that KEPK's performance would continue to improve—particularly by shortening the processing time for each application through a more orderly, documented, and system-monitored process.

In essence, the training was designed to strengthen the capacity of the KEPK FIKES, which has been performing ethics review functions since 2019. It also served as the initial step in utilizing SIM-EPK to support the accountability of the review process and KEPK accreditation preparation. This was the welcome speech of Prof. Irma Nurbaeti S.Kp., M.Kep., Sp.Mat., Ph.D., Chair of KEPK FIKES UIN Jakarta.

The training featured speakers from the national network of ethics service providers/developers, including Drs. Ondri Dwi Sampurno, M.Si., Apt. and Handoko Riwidikdo, S.Kp. The training materials covered strengthening SIM-EPK application management, understanding KEPK ethics policies and governance, preparing systems-based service organizations and SOPs, and managing post-approval reporting such as progress reports and final reports.

On the first day, participants also received technical training and hands-on practice, covering everything from setting up KEPK administration, assigning reviewers and the KEPK structure within the system, researcher registration, protocol submission mechanisms, completing instruments and self-assessments, to simulating review processes by process category (e.g., exempted, expedited, and fullboard), including revision mechanisms based on reviewer notes. On the second day, the agenda focused on continued practice and review of ethical proposals using SIM-EPK, ensuring participants not only understood the concept but were also fully prepared to implement it in their daily services.

Through this training, FIKES UIN Jakarta affirmed its commitment to strengthening a research ecosystem with integrity and accountability. The goals were simple but important: faster processes, more organized documentation, and more consistent ethical review quality, thus ensuring KEPK services are more on track and researchers feel more at ease. (WR)