Ethical attitudes of nurse, physician, and unaffiliated members of institutional review boards.
OBJECTIVE
To evaluate the recommendation for adding unaffiliated members to institutional review boards (IRB) by comparing the attitudes and influence of IRB members of different backgrounds, primarily nurses, physicians, and unaffiliated members.


METHODS
Survey.


METHODS
A closed-ended self-administered questionnaire concerning ethical issues in human subjects research was completed by 284 IRB members in a nonprobability sample of 27 IRBs in 12 U.S. states. The attitudes and influence of IRB members with different backgrounds were compared.


RESULTS
Nurses rated most of the issues as more important than did all other members; physicians rated most of the issues as less important than did all other members; and unaffiliated IRB members rated the issues similar to the whole. Nurses and unaffiliated members were ranked the least influential IRB members, and IRB chairs and physicians were ranked the most influential.


CONCLUSIONS
The responses of the IRB members in this study indicate that adding more unaffiliated members to IRBs is unlikely to increase IRB concerns with ethical issues. Adding more nurse members to IRBs might increase IRB concerns with ethical issues if the level of influence of the nurses is increased.
Rothstein
William G
WG
Department of Sociology and Anthropology, University of Maryland, Baltimore County, Baltimore, MD 21250, USA. rothstei@umbc.edu
Phuong
Linh H
LH
D000288:Administrative Personnel / Q000941:ethics / Q000523:psychology; D000328:Adult; D001291:Attitude of Health Personnel; D016009:Chi-Square Distribution; D004989:Ethics; D028744:Ethics Committees, Research / Q000941:ethics / Q000458:organization & administration*; D004993:Ethics, Nursing; D032984:Ethics, Research; D005260:Female; D017408:Guidelines as Topic; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D006287:Health Planning Guidelines; D006301:Health Services Needs and Demand; D006805:Human Experimentation / Q000941:ethics*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008396:Maryland; D008875:Middle Aged; D009726:Nurses / Q000523:psychology; D015404:Nursing Methodology Research; D009935:Organizational Affiliation; D010820:Physicians / Q000941:ethics / Q000523:psychology; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014481:United States