Ethical and legal aspects of the protection of vulnerable groups: international and national standards

Krajnović, Dušanka and Mujović Zornić, Hajrija (2013) Ethical and legal aspects of the protection of vulnerable groups: international and national standards. Jahr – European Journal of Bioethics, 4 (2). pp. 725-737. ISSN 1847-6376 eISSN 1848-7874

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Abstract

Vulnerable groups are particularly vulnerable categories of persons who, due to specific differences of life need more support, and as such they are protected by legal regulations and ethical standards in the field of health care. Today in the regulation of clinical tests were conducted in vulnerable group includes those who do not have the legal capacity to give consent or lack the capacity to make decisions, and often includes the exploited population - people who for some reason are in a position to be abused (students of medical schools, employees of the pharmaceutical industry, refugees, prisoners, soldiers, or people with HIV). Problems with the inclusion of vulnerable and particularly vulnerable groups in clinical trials did not stop even at the present time, and this paper will introduce some of the “paradigmatic” cases. The aim of this research is examining the regulations to protect vulnerable groups from the ethical and legal aspects using a descriptive method. Reviewing regulations at the national, regional and international levels and international standards and EU documents, we conclude that improving population health and reducing health inequalities protect all forms of vulnerability.

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