Japanese Society of Radiological Technology Code of Ethics
Chapter 1 General Provisions
Purpose
Article 1: The purpose of this code is to ensure, with regard to the operations stipulated inArticle 4 of the charter, the ethical appropriateness of academic research conducted bymembers of the society and activities of the society. It is based on the “Ethical Guidelines
for Medical and Health Research Involving Human Subjects,” issued in December 2014 by
the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology and the Ministry of Health,Labour and Welfare. This code also stipulates standards of conduct for members.
Scope of Application
Article 2: This code provides education and enlightenment for members regarding ethics inresearch, in academic research presentations (including paper presentations), and inacademic research and operations carried out by the society as a whole.
Basic Approach
Article 3: Members shall recognize the basic human rights of all people and act appropriately incarrying out academic research and the activities of the society.
2. To give maximum priority to the importance of all life, including nonhuman animal life,
we engage in academic activities concerning the science of radiology and related activities.
Awareness and Responsibilities of Members
Article 4: Members shall be aware that their research and practical activities have an impact
upon individuals and society, and shall aim to further the interests of unspecified large
numbers of individuals as well as society as a whole.
2. When planning and carrying out medical and health research involving human subjects,
members must obtain prior approval of the ethics of their activities from the ethicalcommittee of the institution to which they belong or from a supervisor or director of an
institution with an equivalent role.
Obligations of Researchers
Article 5: Groups made up of members of the society who plan and undertake research(hereinafter referred to as “Investigators, Etc.”) shall in all circumstances safeguard the life,health, privacy, and dignity of research participants such as patients and volunteers(hereinafter referred to as “Participants”), based on their awareness that they are part ofan academic group that professionally handles radiation.
2. Investigators, Etc., must conduct medical and health research involving human subjects

in accordance with scientific principles and on the basis of information sources related tosciences, such as scientific documents and other scientific information, as well as sufficientexperimental results.
3. It shall be a principle of Investigators, Etc., not to conduct activities that are invasive toParticipants (such as radiation exposure, or activities that cause physical or mentalsuffering).
4. Investigators, Etc., must clearly inform Participants concerning informed consent
procedures, such as explanations of details, methods of confirming consent, the presenceor absence of guarantees concerning research, etc.
5. Investigators, Etc., shall strive to safeguard personal information and shall not disclose
information obtained in the course of research unless there is an appropriate reason to doso.
6. In designing, planning, carrying out, and reporting research, Investigators, Etc., shallmaintain records of research data and handle them with the utmost care; shall not carryout fraudulent acts such as fabrication, falsification, plagiarism, repeated publication, orduplicate submission of manuscripts; and shall not assist with any such acts.
7. In the event that acts such as those described in the previous item are discovered,members must declare them immediately.
8. When conducting medical and health research involving human subjects, Investigators,
Etc., shall notify facility supervisors and parties concerned of the purpose of the research
and must obtain their consent before conducting the research.
Responsibilities of Collaborative Researchers
Article 6: “Collaborative researchers” are all researchers who belong to research teams and arelisted as coauthors in lecture meetings, academic conferences, research papers, etc.
Investigators, Etc., may not include individuals in research teams as collaborativeresearchers or list them as coauthors without their consent.
2. Investigators, Etc., shall not designate individuals who do not contribute to theexperiment or the intellectual activities of the research as collaborative researchers.
3. All collaborative researchers shall take on the obligations of researchers according to thedegree of their contribution to the applicable research.
Informed ConsentArticle 7: Investigators, Etc., must fully inform Participants about: the significance, purpose,methods, and expected results of the research; the relationships between the Investigators,Etc., and related organizations; the gains that may be realized by participating, as well as
the risks that may occur; possible disadvantages that may affect Participants; unpleasantcircumstances that unavoidably accompany the research; and also what will occur after theend of the research, as well as the presence or absence of compensation.
2. Investigators, Etc., must explain to Participants that they have the right to stop
participating in the study or to withdraw consent to participate at any time without any
disadvantage to themselves.
3. Investigators, Etc., must secure Participantsʼ consent in some written form in advance.
This must be informed consent, freely granted by the Participant after confirming that theParticipant understands the information provided as described in items 1 and 2.
Investigators, Etc., must ensure that Participants who might be under pressure due to social,economic, or medical reasons are acting out of their own free will and not under duress.
Protection of Personal Information
Article 8: Regarding information gained in the societyʼs activities or in the course of carrying out
work, members shall not disclose all personal information other than that deemed necessary
in their judgment as professionals. If documents containing an individualʼs personal
information are used in presenting research, members must assume responsibility forsafeguarding that individualʼs privacy.
2. “Personal information” refers to information that could allow the individual to be identified,such as names, birthdates, and other records. This includes information that could be easily
used to identify a specific individual when collated with other information.
3. It is sometimes possible, even with personal information that includes images, specimens,etc., but by itself will not identify an individual, to find the identity by combining different
types of information. In that case, all or a portion of the information that could be socombined must be made anonymous so the individual cannot be identified.
4. The personal information of members shall be handled by the society in accordance withthe separate document “Guidelines for the Protection of Personal Information.”
Ensuring Fairness
Article 9: Members shall not discriminate against individuals on the basis of race, sex, age, social
status, affiliation, ideology, or religion, and shall respect individualsʼ human rights andindividuality. Moreover, they shall respect the freedom of individuals and treat them fairly.
Conflicts of Interest
Article 10: To ensure the fairness and reliability of the research, members must appropriately
handle their relationships with companies, etc., that may be interested parties, and may
have a conflict of interest, in accordance with the “Guidelines for Managing Conflicts ofInterest (COI) in Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare Scientific Research” (Ministry ofHealth, Labour and Welfare, issued March 2008, partly revised April 2015).
2. “Conflict of interest” refers to situations in which, due to economic interests, etc., the fairand appropriate judgments required for research are hindered or a third party is concernedthat such hindrance could occur.
3. If Investigators, Etc., receive money, goods, stock, etc., from companies when conducting
research or academic presentations, this must be disclosed.
4. If the scientific neutrality of the Investigators, Etc., could be hindered, the names ofcompanies or wording that could allow a particular company to be identified shall not be
included in the research theme, the title of the academic presentation, etc.
Ethical Review Committee
Article 11: To achieve the purposes stated in Article 1 of this code, this society shall establish abody called the Japanese Society of Radiological Technology Ethical Review Committee(hereinafter referred to as the “Ethical Review Committee”).
2. The function of the Ethical Review Committee is to investigate and consider, from an
ethical and social perspective, the information needed to make an ethical determination on
the basis of this Code of Ethics in the event of a report of a violation of the said code or arequest to hold deliberations, and to report the results of such deliberations to the Board ofDirectors.
Ethical Compliance and Reviews
Article 12: This code must be observed by all personnel who belong to the society. Members
must fully understand this Code of Ethics and constantly take care not to violate it.
2. If it is necessary to conduct an investigation related to Article 1 or Article 2 of this code,
the Ethical Review Committee stipulated in Article 11 shall carry out the necessary
investigation and review.
3. In the event of a report of a violation of the Code of Ethics or a request to holddeliberations, the case to be deliberated, the reason for the report, and the reporterʼs nameand affiliation shall be recorded, and this information shall be submitted to the Vicepresident of the Board of Directors.
4. When a violation is reported, members may be subject to investigation by the Ethical
Review Committee. Additionally, if it is determined that a violation has occurred, thesupervisor at the memberʼs institution may be notified.

Chapter 2 Detailed Regulations
Composition of the Ethical Review Committee
Article 13: The Ethical Review Committee is composed of the following review personnel.
(1) Vice-president of the Board(2) At least six members, including directors

(3) Several humanities and social sciences (including ethics and law) experts(4) Several nonmember experts(5) Other individuals deemed necessary.
2. The review personnel described in the preceding paragraph will receive approval fromthe Board of Directors upon a recommendation from the Vice-president of the Board.
3. The Ethical Review Committee must be composed of both male and female review
personnel.
Terms of Appointment
Article 14: The term of appointment of Ethical Review Committee personnel shall be two years
except that any replacement shall be appointed to serve out the remaining term of theappointee being replaced.
2. Ethical Review Committee personnel may be reappointed.
Review Committee Chairperson and Convocation
Article 15: The Ethical Review Committee shall have a Review Committee Chairperson, whoshall be assigned by the Vice-president of the Board.
2. When a report of an ethics case or a request to hold deliberations is received, the Review
Committee Chairperson shall convene the Ethical Review Committee and serve aschairperson of the deliberations.
3. In the event of an unforeseen circumstance involving the Review Committee Chairperson,
the review staff member appointed in advance by the Review Committee Chairperson shalltake over his or her duties.
Proceedings
Article 16: The Ethical Review Committee may not initiate proceedings unless at least two-thirdsof the review personnel are present.
2. Review personnel with a connection to a research protocol under review may notparticipate in the review or resolution concerning said research protocol.
3. If the committee deems it necessary, the implementation supervisor and parties
concerned may be requested to attend and to explain or state their views regarding theresearch protocol, etc.
4. The committee must reach its determinations upon the agreement of at least threefourths of the review personnel in attendance.
5. Research review materials reviewed by the committee must be retained for five years
from the date on which the end of said research is reported.
6. At least once per year, the society must publicize the name list of Ethical Review
Committee members, information on proceedings of the committee, and an overview of thecommitteeʼs reviews.
Expedited Reviews
Article 17: For cases in which the Review Committee Chairperson deems it possible to waive orsimplify the review, an expedited review may be conducted by a committee member
previously designated by the Review Committee Chairperson.
2. The committee shall draw up its own rules setting the conditions for cases in which it ispossible to waive or simplify the review.
3. The Review Committee Chairperson shall report the results of expedited reviews to allcommittee members.
4. Upon receipt of a report of an expedited review, a committee member may request theReview Committee Chairperson to have the committee make a new review. In this event, if
the Review Committee Chairperson determines that there is appropriate cause, thecommittee must promptly convene and deliberate on the matter.
Attendance by Non-Review Committee Members
Article 18: If the committee deems it necessary, nonmembers of the committee members may
be requested to attend a review and offer an explanation or their views.
Special Investigation GroupArticle 19: A Special Investigation Group may be established within the Ethical Review
Committee to conduct specialized preliminary investigations and considerations of specificmatters.
2. The committee shall determine the operational rules for the subject matter and conductof the Special Investigation Group.
Supplementary Provisions
1. This code may be revised through a resolution by the Board of Directors.
2. In accordance with the approval granted at the Board of Directors meeting on November 23,
2011, this code will apply beginning with FY2012.
3. The definition of medical and health research involving human subjects in this code is based
upon the “Ethical Guidelines for Medical and Health Research Involving Human Subjects,”
Chapter 1: General Provisions, Article 2: Glossary (“Medical and Health Research Involving
Human Subjects”) (issued December 2014 by the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports,
Science and Technology and the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare).
Partly revised March 1, 2015
Partly revised November 14, 2015