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  About Dr Vivienne Nathanson

Dr Vivienne Nathanson is the Director of Professional Activities for the British Medical Association. She has worked extensively on issues related to health policy, ethics and science, Dr Nathanson is Chair of the BMA Steering Group on Human Rights, the UK Council member of the International Rehabilitation Council for the Care of Victims of Torture and a members of the Central Ethical Surveillance Group of Unilever PLC.

Statement by Dr Vivienne Nathanson

Codes of Conduct for Biomedical Researchers

The aim of any system we establish must be to prevent the development of either weapons themselves or knowledge that is only of use in the making of such weapons, as an accidental or deliberate product of biomedical research.

The systems that we develop must be effective. We know when codes of conduct on other areas work which gives us clues as to how to develop codes that are likely to be effective in this area.

I shall give some examples of codes of practice and codes of conduct and analyse how much we know about when and why they work well, or why they fail to work. I shall examine some of the processes gone through to develop the new version of the Declaration of Helsinki, and why that new version (dated October 2000) is already under threat

Amongst other things I shall look at concepts such as key stakeholders in research, “ownership” of the code of conduct, developments of parallel ethical frameworks and values statements and the relationship of researchers with governments, industry and other controlling influences.

I shall also refer to a statement on biological and other weapons which will be discussed (and I expect adopted as policy) at the World Medical Association meeting in Washington a week after the ICRC conference. I will identify the elements within this that might demonstrate a willingness to engage in this debate by part of the biomedical community.

From that examination I shall draw out some lessons for a process that will identify a code that relates to weapons, and attempt to set out an operating model that will build upon the strengths of the biomedical research community.

Other documents in this section: Focus > Biotechnology and weapons