Introduction
There have been complaints about the side effect resulting from the use of some antiretroviral drugs by HIV positive patients. An anecdotal observation shows that, after some patients stopped using the speculated drugs, the patients viral count dropped thus improving life expectancy. This has compelled the healthcare experts to test the anecdotal observations. This essay explains the concerns that the team needs to consider while structuring their research protocol. This is meant to ensure the safety of the participants during the research.
Concerns to be included in the research
The project must put into consideration the informed consent practices. Informed consent practices will ensure that the patients understand the aim and objective of the research. The researchers should explain to patients the importance of the research, the aim of research, and the procedure that will be used in carrying out the research. Individuals should not be pressured so as to take part in the research. However, they should be encouraged to do it voluntarily. The researcher should explain to the patients the importance of volunteering in such research. It is ethical to respect the cultural traditions of the community in which the research will be done. This makes consultation with community members before carrying out the actual research vital (Marshall, 2).
The research should be a double blind trial
The profession needs to consider if the experiment will be free from bias. A health care research should be double blind so as to avoid a biased outcome. The outcome of the research should not be carried so as to benefit the individuals, but the entire community. The procedure to be used during the research should be designed in a way that will lead to minimal or no harm to the volunteers (Ashcroft, 6).
Factors to consider for the result to be definitive
There are various aspects that should be put into consideration for the outcome of the research to be definitive. For instance, the patient should participate voluntarily for this aspect to be realized. When people are forced to participate in such research, they may end up using other drugs instead of the drugs in question. This can lead to distorted information concerning the drug in question. In addition, the company that is involved in the manufacture of the drug should not participate in the research for it to be considered definitive. Participation of such companies can lead to the manipulation of the results to suit their own interest and not the interest of the society.
In case of wrong conclusion being made about the drug, people will continue using the drug despite the fact that it is non-effective. This will result in the use of sub-optimal drug, which is unethical. The research has to confirm that the advantages observed are long term and not short term (Beauchamp, Walters and Kahn, 45).
Conclusion
The protocols followed in this research are meant to ensure the safety of the parties involved in the research. The researchers should perform the research in the interest of the society who has to be consulted before carrying a research. Therefore, the sick individuals should not be forced to participate in the research. Instead, they should be persuaded to do it voluntarily. Reliable conclusions can be arrived from the research if the patients participated voluntarily, and there are no other parties that manipulated the results.
Works Cited
Ashcroft, Richard E. Principles of Health Care Ethics. Chichester, West Sussex, England: John Wiley & Sons, 2007. Print.
Beauchamp, Tom, LeRoy Walters and Jeffrey Kahn. Contemporary Issues in Bioethics. (7th ed.) Belmont, Calif.: Thomson/ Wadsworth, 2008. Print.
Marshall, Patricia L. Ethical Challenges in Study Design and Informed Consent for Health Research in Resource-Poor Settings. Geneva, Switzerland: World Health Organization, 2007. Print.