Report28th January 2020

Research in global health emergencies: ethical issues

Research conducted during emergencies plays a crucial role in supporting the immediate response, as well as learning for the future.

Global healthCOVID-19

Report (PDF)Short report (PDF)Report overview (PDF)Overview for ethics commitees (PDF)Overview for academic journals (PDF)Overview for researchers and research institutions (PDF)Overview for reseearch funders (PDF)Joint workshop report – community engagement (PDF)

This report shares the findings from a two year in-depth inquiry, run by an international working group which gathered evidence and experience from many contributors across the globe.

In this report we set out how research can be undertaken ethically during emergencies, in order to promote the contribution that research can make to improving current and future emergency preparedness and response.

We make 24 recommendations to ‘duty bearers’ such as research funders, research organisations, governments, and researchers. These are summarised in our call for action. We suggest changes that would align their policies and practices more closely to three core values of fairness, equal respect, and helping reduce suffering.

Translations

The overview of this report is available in the following languages:

• Arabic
• Chinese
• Farsi / Persian
• French
• Portuguese
• Spanish

The short report is available in the following languages:

• Chinese
• Farsi / Persian
• French
• Portuguese
• Spanish

We are grateful for the work of the following organisations and people who worked on these translations:

• Chinese: The Collaborating Centre for Oxford University and CUHK for Disaster and Medical Humanitarian Response (CCOUC); The Jockey Club School of Public Health and Primary Care, The Chinese University of Hong Kong; Professor Emily Ying Yang CHAN; Mr Zhe HUANG; Professor Kevin KC HUNG; Mr Sida LIU; Mr Eugene Siu Kai LO; Professor Shelly Lap-ah TSE; Professor Johnson Zixin WANG; Mr Chi Shing WONG; Professor Samuel Yeung-shan WONG; and Professor Daisy Dexing ZHANG.
• Farsi / Persian: Fatemeh Bahmani, MD, Phd; Saeedeh Saeedi Tehrani MD, Phd; Mina Forouzandeh, MD, Phd; and Akram Hashemi, MD, Phd, affiliated with The Iran University of Medical Sciences (IUMS) Department of Medical Ethics.
• French: Working group members, Karl Blanchet and Philippe Guérin.
• Portuguese: Working group member, Beatriz da Costa Thomé.

Developments since launch

In May 2021, we published a report looking at the developments made since the report’s publication.

Online course

Together with The Global Health Network, have created a free online course based on our report.

This is a specialist short course exploring core ethical issues that arise in the conduct of research in global health emergencies – from outbreaks of infectious diseases to natural and human-made disasters.

A Spanish, French, and Portuguese translation of the course is also available.