|
Momodou
Denmark
11787 Posts |
 Posted - 16 Feb 2008 : 16:55:14
|
MRC Unit Director On Biomedical Research Clinical Practice
By Annia Gaye
The Medical Research Council Unit Director, Professor Tumani Corrah, has said that biomedical research is an important component of improving health and healthcare. Mr. Corrah made this remarks at a one day workshop on the Ethical Standards in Biomedical Research and Good Clinical Practice (GCP) at the Kairaba Beach Hotel on the 12 February. He further said that they need to continue to learn from the results of carefully designed and directed research studies involving individual participants as well as population.
“There is the continued need to find new or improved medicines and vaccines and the need to discover better ways of delivering medicinal products and vaccines,” he said.
He noted that, they must not forget that non-medical research into simple things like the provision of clean water, pit latrines, improved nutrition and simple interventions such as washing of the face may produce a previously unimaginable impact on disease.
He further said that the provision of pit latrines and face washing has had on reducing the burden of Trachoma the commonest cause of preventable blindness in the Gambia. “The Standard of biomedical research must be the same regardless of whether it is carried out in the developing or developed world,” he said. He observed that the general ethical principles which related to health care research all over the world are the same to cultural suffering, to respect the individual, not to exploit the poor and vulnerable while respecting cultural differences.
Mr. Corrah noted that their goal is to ensure that unethical biomedical research is not permitted in The Gambia and to protect individuals and communities taking part in biomedical research. He said “Indeed, the committees interest in what happens to individuals and communities “after the research is over” has yield significant benefits to the Gambia’s EPI programme which now includes the Hepatitis B and Haemophillus Influenzae Tyoe B vaccines, following successful studies of the vaccines in The Gambia. We are proud to say that The Gambia EPI was the first to incorporate these vaccines into its schedules in Africa.”
The World Health Organisation representative in The Gambia, Dr. Nesta Shivute, noted that they recognize biomedical research as an important part of its work, but noted that the evidence generated from it can only be meaningful if it is conducted in an ethically sound manner. He further said that the international Ethical guidelines for Biomedical research includes that the Research protocol should provide detailed description of the producers to be followed (during the research process), so as to ensure the protection of human subjects involved in the study ; that the appropriate drugs, vaccines diagnosis producers, or instruments to be used have to be listed, whether they are registered, unregistered, new or currently use in the Gambia and also to include that it is appropriate for children, the elderly, physically challenged, and pregnant women, which should be indicated and justified.
Mr. Shivute assured the meeting that WHO and other partners will continue to support biomedical research into the major health issues affecting the developing restructuring world and to build research capacity in these areas so countries are better equipped to tackle their own health problems.
Source: Foroyaa Newspaper Burning Issues
Issue No 20/2008, 15 – 17 February 2008
|
A clear conscience fears no accusation - proverb from Sierra Leone |
|
Topic Locked
