Medical Ethics Advisor – May 1, 2012
May 1, 2012
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Hospitals grapple with ethics of donation after cardiocirculatory death
In recent years, there has been a push for hospitals to receive organs from donors who are not technically brain dead. -
Study suggests clarity in informed consent
Researchers and review boards should pay close attention to informed consent comprehension among all research participants, but this attentiveness is especially needed for people from a high-risk population. -
Researchers weigh in on H5N1 research
In a commentary on the biosecurity controversy surrounding publication of bird flu research details, a bioethicist and a vaccine expert at Johns Hopkins reaffirm that "all scientists have an affirmative ethical obligation to avoid contributing to the advancement of biowarfare and bioterrorism," but that there are not sufficient structures in place to evaluate potential societal risks. -
Bioethicists contribute to consensus opinion
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Presidential commission promotes reforms
Add another voice to the national conversation on improving protection of research participants: The Presidential Commission for the Study of Bioethical Issues, which recently released its recommendations for reforming federal oversight of human subjects' research. -
Recommendations for review boards
The Presidential Commission for the Study of Bioethical Issues offered 14 recommendations for improving oversight of human subjects' research: -
Request for comments on genome data
On Nov. 24, 2009, President Obama established The Presidential Commission for the Study of Bioethical Issues to advise him on bioethical issues generated by novel and emerging research in biomedicine and related areas of science and technology. -
Organizations end myths about organ donation
Donor Alliance, a Denver-based federally designated non-profit organ procurement organization, and American Association of Tissue Banks (AATB), a McLean, VA-based accredited tissue bank, have announced results from an initiative designed to study the public's perception of organ, eye, and tissue donation. -
News Briefs
The U.S. Supreme Court has recently thrown out a lower court ruling that allows human genes to be patented. This topic is of great importance to cancer researchers, patients, and drugmakers.