Office of Research Compliance

Reporting Compliance Issues or Concerns

Reporting Compliance Issues or Concerns

Seattle Children's Research Institute employees have a responsibility to maintain the highest ethical standards in their research activities. As such, all employees have an obligation to report their concerns about possible violations of any applicable law, regulation or Seattle Children's policy or procedure. Employees should remember that, when in doubt, the better course of action is to report all good-faith concerns.

Reporting Options

Where to best raise a concern will depend on the issue and the situation. There are at least four options:

  • Discuss the issue with an immediate supervisor.
  • Discuss the issue with a higher-level manager or director.
  • Discuss the issue with Research Integrity Officer Wendy Jakobsen at 206-884-2918.
  • If you feel uncomfortable discussing your concerns in person, you may at any time call the Compliance Helpline at 877-483-3049 or report your concern online using EthicsPoint.

Compliance Helpline and EthicsPoint

The Compliance Helpline (877-483-3049) and EthicsPoint serve as resources for all employees to inquire about, report on and discuss any compliance questions or potential violations they may have encountered. The helpline is toll-free and all calls are external. Seattle Children's does not receive any information on the caller's identity unless the caller requests their identity be given to Seattle Children's. The online reporting service is on an EthicsPoint secure server and is not part of Seattle Children's website or intranet. All reports to the Compliance Helpline or EthicsPoint can be anonymous if desired.

Upon calling the helpline, employees are greeted by specialists trained in interviewing and documenting information by telephone. Using EthicsPoint, employees are asked to enter information in the various fields as prompted and then to submit the entry. After providing as much information as possible, either on the phone or online, employees will receive an assigned case number. The report information will be relayed to the Corporate Compliance Officer (or other compliance personnel as appropriate) for investigation. Employees can check back using the assigned case number to receive updates on the status of their report or to add more information to it.

Seattle Children's will promptly investigate all reports. Investigations will be as confidential as possible. All employee reports are protected under state and federal laws. Seattle Children's may not retaliate against any report or question pertaining to legitimate questions, violations or suspected misconduct.

The Compliance Helpline and EthicsPoint services are available 24 hours a day, seven days a week.