Sridhar receives lifetime achievement award for commitment to research protocols

Sujatha Sridhar, MBBS, MCE, associate vice president of Research Compliance at UTHealth Houston, received the Association of Accreditation of Human Subjects Protection Program’s (AAHRPP) 2023 Lifetime Achievement Award, in appreciation of her commitment to the accreditation of human subjects protection programs.

The award was presented at the AAHRPP annual conference held in May in Baltimore. Sridhar received the award for her many dedicated years of service to the organization as a site visitor, team leader, and council member.

Sridhar thanked the university as well as her colleagues for the honor, including Peter Davies, MD, PhD, the then-executive vice president for academic and research affairs, for taking a chance on her as a newcomer to the United States from India.

“I was warmly embraced by the AAHRPP community and immediately felt a sense of belonging,” Sridhar said. “Being part of this community allowed me to learn invaluable lessons from other accredited organizations. I gained insights into best practices, absorbed shared experiences, and discovered effective strategies for UTHealth Houston’s human subjects protection program.”

Sridhar said the university’s commitment to the program and its accreditation has propelled the university’s research mission forward.

“UTHealth Houston’s unwavering commitment to AAHRPP accreditation has established this institution as a beacon of excellence in the field,” she said. “This accreditation ensures that our research endeavors remain firmly rooted in ethical principles, guiding our actions and preserving the trust of our stakeholders.” 

Sridhar was responsible for leading the effort to earn accreditation of UTHealth Houston’s Human Research Protection Program by AAHRPP in 2009, and the university has maintained its accredited status continuously since then. Her award states “Sujatha Sridhar embodies the spirit of AAHRPP’s mission and is a deeply valued and highly respected AAHRPP ambassador.”

"Dr. Sridhar joined our UTHealth Houston HRPP team at a critical time of reorganization in 20008 as we were also navigating the new AAHRPP accreditation process," said Anne Dougherty, MD, vice president of HRPP and UTHealth Houston institutional official. "She brought in not only strategic experience in the process but also a powerhouse of energy and organization. She represents the heart and soul of our program. Her exemplary service in the AAHRPP community throughout her career at UTHealth Houston has provided us with ongoing insight into innovative practices that have shaped our program into one that benefits the greater community that we serve as well as our research enterprise."

Sridhar is also the recipient of the 2022 President’s Award for Leadership for her dedication to the university and the people it serves.

Sridhar completed her internal medicine training at Maharaj Yeshwant Rao Hospital in Indore, India, following her graduation from Mahatma Gandhi Memorial Medical College in Indore, India. She received a Master of Clinical Embryology at the National University of Singapore, and joined UTHealth Houston in 2008.

The Lifetime Achievement Award is the highest honor bestowed by the organization.