Akademik Veri Yönetim Sistemi
Tezin Türü: Yüksek Lisans
Tezin Yürütüldüğü Kurum: Acıbadem Mehmet Ali Aydınlar Üniversitesi, Tıp Fakültesi, Temel Tıp Bilimleri Bölümü, Türkiye
Tezin Onay Tarihi: 2024
Tezin Dili: Türkçe
Öğrenci: Abdullah Taskin
Danışman: Fatma Yeşim Işıl Ülman
Özet:
How do Research Ethics Committees Work: A Qualitative Study from Turkey
Research Ethics
Committees (REC) are the boards that evaluate in a wide range of studies from non-interventional
or interventional trials on humans, biological materials of human origin, to a
wide spectrum of study designs based on the use of personal health data. They
aim to respect for human rights, human dignity, autonomy, safety,
confidentiality and privacy, balancing with progress and advancement in science
in line with ethical values and principles. The structure and functioning of
the REC are diversified depending on the features of studies operating in compliance
with international guidelines and local regulations on research integrity.
This study aims
to obtain information about the ways in which the RECs work in Turkey, and to provide
information about their functioning in light of international declarations and
guidelines upholding universal ethical principles and values. It was conducted by
in-depth interviews with the active members of the RECs from different
universities and hospitals in Turkey. 23 ethics committee members from diverse
disciplines took part in the study. Oral and written informed consent were
obtained from every participant. Interviews were carried out by using the
semi-structured interview guide form, and recorded by a professional voice
recorder. The content of the interviews was analyzed in line with the
qualitative study methodology.
In conclusion,
this study has provided deeper information about the working dynamics of the RECs
in Turkey. It has demonstrated that ethics committee members work meticulously
to balance their academic duties with long working hours for the Committee
tasks. However, the secretarial services are one of the most important and
missing components that effect the working systematic of any ethics committee.
The contributions of biostatistics, public health and ethics disciplines proved to be necessary during
the ethical evaluation. It attracts attention to the instrumental purpose of some
of the ethical committee applications rather than any substantial contribution
to science. Power relations are rather challenging for members who are aware of
some discrepancies between international guidelines and local practices. Ethics
committees play a significant role to increase scientific and ethical
sensitivity of researchers, and to introduce plural decision-making strategies during
responsible conduct of research.
Keywords: Research ethics committees, Qualitative research, Research integrity, Turkey context