-
Developing a sound, ethical protocol is the top goal for any researcher or IRB. But the basic ethical elements and the considerations behind an investigator's choices may not always be clear, often resulting in back-and-forth discussions between investigators and IRBs reviewing the protocol. A group from Harvard University collaborated with other research stakeholders to develop an ethics reference tool for investigators.
-
Recruiting patients in many areas of clinical trial research is a very slow process, contributing to delays in getting new treatments through the research pipeline.
-
Non-English speakers often are under-represented in clinical trials because of the language barrier and the lack of resources to provide clear and up-to-date translations of informed consent. This leads to questions of equity, an expert notes.
-
Informed consent templates are useful when an IRB office starts a new process or when there are new employees or new investigators submitting applications, but an experienced office can improve IC review quality by weaning its staff off of templates, an expert suggests.
-
While hospice use steadily increased and deaths in the hospital declined, intensive care unit care in the last month of life increased, according to two recent studies.
-
There is a need for bioethicists to educate patients and providers at extended care homes on end-of-life issues.
-
Regularly scheduled peer review, surveys of stakeholders, and demonstration of continuous improvement of policies are some approaches to improve ethics consults.
-
Some bioethicists are expanding their role beyond case consultation into organizational ethics, but may encounter barriers such as lack of support from leadership.
-
More data are being collected at the point of care with the goal of improving quality, but there is widespread uncertainty as to what kind of oversight quality improvement research requires.
-
More than half of rheumatologists who responded to a 2013 survey reported the high cost of treatment for their patients as an ethical concern.
