James V. Lavery

This casebook is comprised of 21 lesser- and better-known case studies in international clinical research ethics, with corresponding commentaries/ethical analyses for each case study written by different experts from the fields of bioethics, philosophy, medical anthropology, medicine, and law. The depth and breadth of the case analyses vary widely from case to case, but in general the analyses are not overly deep or specific, attempting rather to carve out the broad strokes of the relevant ethical issues in each case.

Overall, I would consider this a great supplemental text for an undergraduate-level course in international research ethics. Given the relatively general nature of the case descriptions and analyses, the material is accessible to the layperson, and the text can provide great background on some of the most well known cases in the field. Additionally, many of the core issues in international research ethics, as well as clinical research ethics more broadly construed, are described so that those not well versed in this area can become familiar with the most common debates: informed consent and cultural differences; the use of placebo controls in underdeveloped nations; superiority, equivalence, and non-inferiority trial designs; responsiveness to host country needs; conflicting accounts of exploitation, to name a few. There are also good, moderately extensive bibliographies at the end of each commentary where readers can find more detailed arguments and more established background literature for many of the ethical claims made within the text.

As an undergraduate teaching text, I would rate this book a 4. I am not convinced that this book would be appropriate for other contexts/uses. Self-education for interested readers, perhaps?… (plus d'informations)