The Clinical Research Association was founded in 2006 through the cooperation of members of the Ministry of Health Central Ethics Committee and employees of the Ministry of Health. At the time of the association's establishment, the following founding members served:
President: Prof. Dr. Meral Tuncer (Chair, Central Ethics Committee)
Department of Pharmacology, Hacettepe University Faculty of Medicine
Vice President: Hilal İlbars
Ministry of Health — Clinical Trials Branch
General Secretary: Pharmacist Rabia Gökdoğan
Ministry of Health — Clinical Trials Branch
Treasurer: Dr. Sabahattin Özkaya
Outpatient Clinic
Member: Prof. Dr. Murat Akova
Member, Central Ethics Committee — Hacettepe University Faculty of Medicine, Deputy Dean, Department of Infectious Diseases
Member: Associate Prof. Dr. Filiz Avşar
Member, Central Ethics Committee — Atatürk Training and Research Hospital, Head of Obstetrics and Gynecology Clinic
Member: Dr. Ekmel Olcay
Pharmacologist
The association, which aims to bring together all parties involved in clinical research, was later presided over by Prof. Dr. Murat Akova and Prof. Dr. Hamdi Akan after the first president, Prof. Dr. Meral Tuncer. Currently Dr. Hilal İlbars (Pharmacist) serves as the association's president. Prof. Dr. İsmail Hakkı Ayhan was elected Honorary President in 2021.
After 2006, the association's board of directors came to include, in addition to academics and Ministry of Health employees, representatives from the pharmaceutical industry and contract research organizations. The association organizes various educational activities on clinical research, including online trainings, printed books, symposia and national congresses. It currently operates a web portal, a YouTube channel and a LinkedIn page for its digital activities.
