How swissethics digitized the national ethical review of human research in Switzerland with Optimy
Swissethics
The BASEC portal serves as the single, centralized electronic submission platform for all human research projects in Switzerland, aiming to streamline and standardize the application and evaluation process for researchers, sponsors, and cantonal research ethics committees. By replacing fragmented regional procedures, it ensures data integrity, enhances transparency, and accelerates the ethical review of clinical trials and research projects while strictly maintaining compliance with Swiss federal legislation on human research.
country: Switzerland | 40,000 research projects
Fragmented, paper-based processes slowing down ethical review across Swiss cantons
Before Optimy, research project applications in Switzerland were handled through a combination of paper submissions, emails, and separate regional workflows — creating inconsistencies, delays, and limited visibility across the different cantonal ethics committees. Physical document storage added compliance risks and made traceability difficult.
- No centralized submission platform for researchers across Switzerland
- Fragmented review processes spread across 7 independent cantonal ethics committees
- Heavy reliance on physical document storage and manual handling
- Lack of real-time visibility on application status for researchers and committees
- Compliance and traceability risks from decentralized, paper-based records
- Time-consuming reporting and audit trail management
One national portal. Full legal compliance. Digital from submission to decision.
Optimy was implemented as the backbone of the BASEC portal — Switzerland's single, official national platform for all human research ethics applications. It centralizes the entire lifecycle of ethical review, from electronic submission by researchers and sponsors, through multi-committee evaluation, to final decision — all in compliance with Swiss federal legislation on human research.
- Multi-committee digital review: All documents submitted by researchers are available digitally to members of the relevant ethics committee. Committee members can review, evaluate, and collaborate from any location, without physical document exchange.
- Automated confirmation and compliance-ready data: Researchers receive an immediate email confirmation upon submission. All application data and committee decisions are securely stored, fully traceable, and compliant with Swiss federal legislation on human research (HRA, HRO, ClinO, ClinO-MD).
- Real-time reporting on demand: All application data and internal committee feedback are centralized in one system. Reports on each project can be automatically generated in real time — eliminating manual consolidation at the end of review cycles.
From fragmented regional paperwork to Switzerland's unified national research ethics platform
Since deploying Optimy as the BASEC portal, swissethics has transformed how Switzerland manages the ethical review of human research — replacing a patchwork of cantonal paper-based processes with a single, audit-ready digital system trusted by researchers, sponsors, and ethics committees across the entire country.
40,000
+Clinical trials and research projects processedHuman research applications received and managed since 2014
7
Cantonal Ethics CommitteesAll connected and operational through one single national platform
1
National portal BASEC: Switzerland's single official submission platform for all human research ethics applications
0
Physical submissions requiredFully digital end-to-end process — no paper, no physical storage, instant confirmation
"Every year Swissethics receives countless requests from scientists who would like to do research involving humans. Their process of gathering all the information needed for the application is a complex procedure and the management of this data is crucial in the decision-making. Applicants can send their requests electronically via the Optimy platform. No physical storage is needed and all information is securely kept. Once the request is submitted, applicants receive an immediate confirmation by e-mail. All documents submitted by the applicant are available digitally to the members of the Ethics Committee. Such centralization of digital data allows decision-makers to approve or deny an application from different locations. .The data from the application, as well as the committee members' evaluations, are stored in the system and can be accessed whenever needed. It is also possible to automatically generate real-time reports for each project."
Managing Director
Instead of managing paper-based and fragmented regional procedures, researchers and ethics committees across Switzerland now collaborate through a single, compliant, and fully digital platform.
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