Which are key components of a risk management process?

• A. Hazard identification, risk assessment (likelihood and impact), prioritization, mitigation strategies, and monitoring with a risk register.
• B. Hiring new staff, increasing salaries, expanding facilities, and marketing.
• C. Budget approval, capital expenditure, depreciation, and tax compliance.
• D. Patient recruitment, consent gathering, randomization, and data analysis.

Answer: (A)

The main idea being tested is how a structured risk management process is carried out. It starts with identifying hazards or potential problems, then assessing how likely they are and how big their impact would be. Next comes prioritizing those risks so you know which ones need attention first, followed by choosing and implementing actions to reduce or control them. Finally, you monitor the situation over time to ensure the chosen strategies are working, often using a risk register to keep track of identified risks, assessments, owners, and status.

The option describing hazard identification, risk assessment (likelihood and impact), prioritization, mitigation strategies, and monitoring with a risk register is the best fit because it covers each of these steps in order and includes the ongoing tracking document that makes risk management a living process.

The other options describe activities that aren’t risk management steps: the second set lists general organizational actions like hiring, salary changes, expansion, and marketing; the third lists financial management tasks such as budgeting and depreciation; the fourth lists clinical trial operations like recruitment and data analysis. While those activities may intersect with risk in some contexts, they do not constitute the structured risk management process with a risk register.