Reserach Ethics, consnet and and informed decision making March

Prof Ponsiano Ocama

This presentation defines ethics and its principles, including autonomy, beneficence, and justice, as applied to research involving human participants. It details historical ethical breaches like the Nazi experiments and the Tuskegee Syphilis Study, which led to the development of crucial ethical guidelines such as the Nuremberg Code, the Helsinki Declaration, and the Belmont Report. The document also explains the function of Research Ethics Committees (RECs) or Institutional Review Boards (IRBs) in safeguarding participants' rights and welfare, and elaborates on the components and importance of informed consent, including elements of information, understanding, and voluntary choice.