Public must be made aware of need for research in children, report says

A new report by the UK Nuffield Council on Bioethics calls for researchers to be trustworthy and open and to have courage when designing and conducting clinical research involving children and teenagers.1

The report, by a working group set up in 2013 and chaired by Bobbie Farsides, professor of clinical and biomedical ethics at Brighton and Sussex Medical School, outlines the main ethical challenges in conducting research with children and gives key recommendations to improve the involvement of young people, with the aim of broadening the evidence base for care in this age group.

After a two year review that engaged with over 500 stakeholders in the United Kingdom and internationally, the working party made recommendations for individual researchers and the main organisations that govern research or advocate for children’s health needs. The recommendations include balancing child and parental …