Do family doctors have an obligation to facilitate research?
In the third of a series of articles examining ethical issues in primary care research, we argue that family doctors, when considering what they ought to do in relation to research, have a positive obligation to participate in research and that one means of discharging this obligation is to collaborate in research studies by aiding recruitment. We offer three arguments in support of this obligation-arguments from fairness, reason and utility. We then go on to specify a series of conditions on this obligation which take into account that doctors have many other obligations. These are the conditions of financial remuneration, reciprocity and ability.
Ives
Jonathan
J
Centre for Biomedical Ethics, Primary Care Clinical Sciences, The University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, Birmingham B15 2TT, UK. j.c.ives@bham.ac.uk
Draper
Heather
H
Damery
Sarah
S
Wilson
Sue
S
D005194:Family Practice; D006801:Humans; D028681:Moral Obligations; D010819:Physician's Role; D011320:Primary Health Care; D012106:Research