Clinical trials are a prerequisite to evaluating medicines’ effectiveness and their levels of safety on the intended populations during a drug’s development process. However, therapeutic research trials are a subject of significant criticism due to the techniques through which researchers oversee them and their potential risks to vulnerable populations.
Most organizations that carry out medical investigations are aware of the dangers they pose. As a result, they adopt various strategies to convince participants to join programs willingly. Even so, the factors that place vulnerable individuals at risk are unethical practices such as the lack of transparency and misinformation, and ecological pressures, more specifically, poverty and critical life illnesses. Therefore, the government and standardization authorities should obligate researchers to provide factual and comprehensive information about their test trials, and publish, and publicize their research results to inform individuals of the risks involved.
Unethical research practices that intentionally mislead study participants increase their risks of falling victim to deadly trials. According to Kelly (2013, para. 13), “misinformation is a common ethical issue in clinical trials due to distortion during translation, concealing critical information, and dubious cases of misrepresentation.” The author highlights several cases of projects that took advantage of individuals’ lack of awareness to carry out trials with adverse implications on their health and well-being. Similarly, Washington (2006, p. 350) mentions that “consent forms have several flaws such as scientific language and technical jargon that forces participants to rely on the information they receive from researchers.” In the process, investigators downplay risks and provide an optimistic view that drives participants into imagining unrealistic expectations. As a result, more people are lured into gambling with their lives because of not knowing of the dangers.
Ecological factors such as poverty and critical life illnesses expose human beings to suffering and push them toward risky behaviors like participating in clinical trials to make ends meet. As a result, medical researchers take advantage of individuals’ situations to advocate for their procedures and encourage higher participation levels. Kelly (2013, para. 1) states, “For people struggling to put food on the table and a roof over their heads, ‘voluntary’ participation in clinical trials is a slippery slope.” The author explains that the concept of individuals’ free will is irrelevant to those struggling to feed their families and keep a roof over their heads. Hence, they perceive the conventional and free solutions to their illnesses as a way out of their struggles. Similarly, Washington (2006, p. 351) notes, “When the desperately ill are offered extreme measures and heroic experimental initiatives, they risk confusing therapy with research.” In other words, most individuals perceive clinical trials as a stepping-stone to a better life only to suffer from life-threatening side effects and a poor quality of life. Hence, life pressures play a major role in encouraging people to participate in clinical trials and overlook associated risks.
The government and authorities responsible for standardizing clinical research practices should set up regulations to obligate researchers and organizations to publish and publicize all their research data and comprehensively inform participants of potential risks. According to Kelly (2013, para. 7), humans stand to gain a lot from published studies because they “further transparency, aid future research, and protect patients from misinformation.” Thus, liaising with standardization institutions and other organizations can assist the government and healthcare officials in limiting the number of individuals exposed to clinical research risks. Washington (2006, p. 350) points out that informed consent should entail more than putting down a participant’s signature on a form. Instead, it should be an “ongoing process of patient education and notification”. In other words, participants should receive information about the research at all stages and have a choice of whether to proceed. Informing individuals of all the dangers of clinical trials and the potential negative effects of procedures can offset the implications of poverty and desperation on their decision-making. Therefore, participants will be better positioned to weigh their options instead of rushing into risky drug treatments and procedures.
Medical research and drug testing are pivotal to developing reliable medicine to manage and cure diseases. However, the final stages of the development process obtain information from tests performed on human subjects. Nevertheless, the techniques adopted by researchers do not acknowledge the implications of these solutions on participants’ life quality. In numerous situations, people have lost their lives while some were forced to battle severe side effects. Unethical conduct that condones misinformation and intentionally misleading people into enrolling in clinical research is a factor that increases individuals’ risk of exposure. Likewise, life pressures such as poverty and terminal illnesses obligate people to consider these trials as a possible solution. Even so, most of them do not achieve benefits and often worsen their conditions. Therefore, the government and standardization authorities should establish guidelines to obligate publishing and publicizing information about clinical research for everyone to access and familiarize themselves with what they entail. In addition, researchers should inform participants of what studies involve and the associated risks. Information about the side effects and dangers of clinical trials can assist vulnerable individuals in making the right decisions based on the outcomes.
References
Kelly, S. (2013). Testing drugs on the developing world. The Atlantic. Web.
Washington, H. A. (2006). Medical apartheid: The dark history of medical experimentation on Black Americans from colonial times to the present. Doubleday Books.