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Australasian Human Research Ethics Consultancy Services Pty Ltd (AHRECS)

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Beneficence

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(United States) Prison Experiments – YouTube (Allen Hornblum & Yusef Anthony July 2009)

This account and the research on prisoners are just horrifying.  It is like something from Nazi Germany or perhaps China’s use of organs from prisoners.  This cohort is by definition vulnerable and their use is completely unacceptable.  The fact that they were not being fully advised of what was being tested and the risks, only makes matters worse.  While this is an egregious ethical lapse, it should only be used in professional development, guidance and resource material when speaking with biomedical researchers.  It most definitely, shouldn’t be used when speaking with researchers in other disciplines.  Even when it is used for biomedical researchers, it should be used as a launching point for a discussion about consent, risk, full disclosure and vulnerable populations.

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A funny cartoon of a participant being tested on treadmill, querying the identifying who the person is reading a newspaper in the corner and being told they are the trial monitor.

Friday afternoon’s funny – There are some things that shouldn’t be left in the family

Clinical trial monitors play an essential role, that requires them to be independent and attentive.  They are supposed to keep an eye on the integrity of a trial and upon the degree to which the benefits of the trial justifies the risk. A trial monitor must never have a conflict of interest that might be a potential, perceived or actual conflict of interest.  A spouse is NEVER an appropriate trial monitor for their partner’s clinical trial.  Reading the newspaper is something that a trial monitor can’t do while they are supposed to be monitoring a trial in progress.

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A funny cartoon about researchers poised to start a running race once an approval letter arrives from their research ethics committee.

Friday afternoon’s funny – Research ethics review is not a race

The research ethics review of proposed human research, especially high risk clinical trials is not a race. And potential participants aren’t trapped objects held prisoner waiting to be experimented on.  But sometimes it can feel that is exactly how researchers and institutional review arrangements approach it.  As depicted by this humorous Don Mayne cartoon.  Institutions must strive to ensure that the framing of its research ethics review is based upon resourcing reflective practice and that is how it should approached by its research community.

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A funny cartoon of a straight-laced researcher and his wife arriving at a research project th\at isa wild booze up.

Friday afternoon’s funny – When a research party is a booze up

There can be valid reasons to give participants alcohol.  Indeed such research can explore questions of significance to society.  But as pictured in this humorous cartoon the circumstances need to be carefully managed and the welfare of individual participants monitored. It is unlikely a wild booze up and underage drinking will ever be ethically justifiable. 

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A funny cartoon of a participant hung in a precarious place being asked to sign a withdrawal form.

Friday afternoon’s funny – Suspended

There is so much we could say about this humorous Don Mayne cartoon, but it does give us an opportunity to grumble about withdrawal of consent forms.  Participants should not be expected to complete a form to indicate that they wish to withdraw from a project.  We shouldn’t make it any harder than a participant voicing that they do not wish to continue with a project.  Even though the NHMRC was not courageous here (we debated for a while using stronger language here), we think it is poor ethical practice to expect participants to do more to be able to exit from a project.  Especially, when the research procedures make it hard for a participant to complete a form (though hopefully not hung from the ceiling).

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A funny cartoon about the Steering Committee for a clinical trial.

Friday afternoon’s funny – The Steering Committee

The field of clinical trial ethics is replete with terms that most people will not be aware of (e.g. beneficence) and other phrases where most people will picture something very different from what is intended (e.g. steering committee).  This humourous Don Mayne cartoon of a committee fighting over a steering wheel is the first in a series of cartoons about the different groups that we discuss for clinical trials.  

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