Statement on the protection of time for paediatricians to take part in Research Ethics Committees

The Nuffield Council on Bioethics and the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Heath (RCPCH) have published a joint statement on the protection of time for paediatricians to take part in Research Ethics Committees.

Download the statement (PDF).The statement urges NHS workforce planning bodies to acknowledge the importance of building capacity within the workforce to support more high quality research into child health. The statement was developed following a meeting between representatives of the Nuffield Council on Bioethics, the RCPCH, and NHS Employers in May 2016.

The Council's report on children and research recommended in 2015 that "The UK Departments of Health, NHS Employers, Universities UK and the Health Research Authority should jointly consider what steps they can take to protect the professional time needed for research ethics committees to work effectively."

A 2015 survey of the paediatric workforce by the RCPCH demonstrated that very few paediatricians have time allocated for research-related activities related to children’s health.