Human rights, ethics and the Krever inquiry.

Managing threats rather than risks in blood transfusion: robust design for a complex system.

The practice of transfusion medicine involves a number of ethical issues because blood comes from human beings and is a precious resource with a limited shelf life. In 1980 the International Society of Blood Transfusion endorsed its first formal code of ethics, which was adopted by the World Health Organisation and the League of Red Crescent Societies. A revised code of ethics for donation and transfusion was endorsed in 2000. Blood donation as a gift, donor confidentiality, donor notification and donor consent, consent for transfusion, the right to refuse blood transfusion, the right to be informed if harmed, and ethical principles for establishments, are discussed in the international and Indian contexts.

background

Ethical issues in transfusion medicine.

Actualmente es imprescindible en el planteamiento de los nuevos problemas biomedicos el analisis del contexto social en el que estos se insertan y considerar, ademas, el papel de la investigacion cientifica en la asistencia a traves de la incorporacion de los nuevos conocimientos que ofrece y su materializacion en el desarrollo de nuevas tecnologias. Si bien es obvio que la ciencia se enriquece por diversas vias, el proceso conocido como investigacion cientifica se reconoce como el procedimiento principal del cual se vale la ciencia para desarrollar y enriquecer su acervo de conocimientos. El presente trabajo se propone valorar algunos aspectos bioeticos en el marco de la salud publica y las investigaciones biomedicas, analizados desde una perspectiva global. Para ello, ademas de abordar aspectos eticos generales, se alude a nuevos terminos que han sido incorporados en el debate: equidad e imperialismo etico, y se analizan las principales motivaciones y limitaciones para la realizacion de investigaciones clinicas y epidemiologicas en los paises en via de desarrollo.

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Bioética, investigación y salud pública, desde una perspectiva social

The law on the therapeutic use of human blood and plasma is characterised by the specificity of the raw material, which apart from its unique biological nature, is in very limited supply. The specificity of the sector has shaped a very different type of legislation. The scarcity of this raw material of human origin brings about ethical considerations but if there are not sufficient quantities to treat patients, full respect is not being afforded to the right to healthcare. Moreover, when conflicts of interest arise within the scope of law, one will be prioritised. In this particular case, the right to healthcare prevails over all other considerations, as it is a fundamental right recognised worldwide. In addition to the traditional challenges facing the sector, the emergence of new aggressive infectious diseases was added. The appearance of the AIDS virus brought an immense challenge to the sector and emanated a great social sensitivity. Everything related to the emergence and development of the AIDS pandemic and its influence on healthcare systems, is an essential point of analysis and reflection. At the same time as the emergence of AIDS, the increase of hepatitis and the appearance of new pathogenic germs that are transmitted through blood, had a powerful influence on the reorganization of all healthcare systems. Therefore it is important to remember the fundamental changes which took place in developed countries such as the United States and the EU, without forgetting the repercussions in less well developed countries and, the role of the World Health Organization (WHO). By analysing in detail different legal systems, we can locate a series of factors that conditioned the law on blood and plasma products on a global level. Amongst those common elements, the analysis and problems of the responsibilities of legal systems becomes of particular relevance, which despite the various legal systems, seem to be treated in a similar way. The major differences are produced when these rules are applied by the various legal systems. Blood and plasma are unique national and international resources. Availability of safe blood and plasma products is essential to modern healthcare.

Additional excerpts

The political dimension of blood and plasma derivatives

/pdf/human-rights-ethics-and-the-krever-inquiry-565imq9b1p.pdf

Human rights, ethics and the Krever inquiry.

Citations

Managing threats rather than risks in blood transfusion: robust design for a complex system.

Ethical issues in transfusion medicine.

Bioética, investigación y salud pública, desde una perspectiva social

The political dimension of blood and plasma derivatives

The political dimension of blood and plasma derivatives

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