in the last few years, medical education policy makers have expressed concern about changes in the ethical attitude and behavior of medical trainees during the course of their education. they claim that newly graduated physicians (mds) are entering residency years with inappropriate habits and attitudes earned during their education. this allegation has been supported by numerous research on th...

OBJECTIVES This study sought to understand whether UK Foundation doctors perceived the phenomena of ethical erosion and empathy decline during their initial period of clinical practice, and if so, why this occurred. METHODS This qualitative study used semi-structured interviews with nine doctors in their first year of clinical practice at Royal Bolton Hospital, UK. Participants were invited t...

Formal clinical ethics review first developed in the USA and most hospitals there have structures in place. This is often a clinical ethics committee. Developments have been slower in the UK, where there has been uncertainty and variability about the role of clinical ethics committees. Even in the USA, their exact role is uncertain. Although we now have a good idea of the mechanisms for ethical...

Research ethics review is an important process, designed to protect participants in medical research. However, it is increasingly criticised for failing to meet its aims. Here, two researchers reflect on their experiences of applying for ethical approval of observational research in clinical settings. They highlight some problems faced by reviewers and researchers and propose a two-stage ethica...

When several decades ago the IRB system was established trying to balance major moral consideration in research with human subjects, the main impetus were severe cases of unethical behaviour and experiences, often protected by state and institutional administration. The first phase of the IRB aimed at protecting subjects from serious hazards, while in later stages the IRB turned to „lesser risk...

Local review of research by ethics committees in the UK has long been held to be an important right of the local research ethics committee and, even with the introduction of the European Clinical Trials Directive, the governance arrangements for research ethics committees continue to allow for local review of multicentre studies. There is no requirement for local review in either the European U...