UK Biobank part 3
Readers with a long memory will recall that I blogged about the UK Biobank project back in January (with an update in May), and that at the time I made a Freedom of Information request to try to receive the ethics application form for the study.
Continue reading→Weight watchers and churnalism
Today, a story appears in the news citing the latest research which shows that sending obese patients to Weight Watchers helps them lose twice as much weight as normal NHS weight loss treatments. The story appears, in remarkably similar form, on the BBC, and in The Guardian, The Telegraph, and even The Sun.
Continue reading→Homoeopathy: is it all bad?
There has been much discussion in the blogosphere and the Twittersphere lately about homoeopathy, partly because of some Early Day Motions being put before the British parliament on the subject, and partly because of the BMA's vote against homoeopathy at their recent conference.
Continue reading→A rose by any other name...
I sit on a research ethics committee, which for the most part is a fascinating experience. It is always interesting to see what research people want to do, and satisfying when we can help it become more ethical.
However, sometimes I really despair about the way ethics committees are managed. Today, I have received a letter from NRES, asking me to take part in a consultation. Is this consultation about important ethical issues in clinical research?
Continue reading→Publication ethics: not just an industry problem
Much is written about ghostwriting in the medical literature. To be clear, ghostwriting is unethical, and pretty much everyone agrees about that. However, it seems to be a worrying trend that many of those who are most vocal in condemning it are guilty themselves of the practices they condemn.
My last blog post mentioned Senator Grassley's report on ghostwriting. It appears that he didn't actually write the report himself, despite putting his name on the front. I have asked him to clarify, but have had no reply. Draw your own conclusions. It looks like Senator Grassley thinks ghostwriting is evil if other people do it, but it's OK if he does it himself.
Continue reading→Senator Grassley's report on ghostwriting
Those who follow developments on ghostwriting in the medical literature will be aware that US Senator Charles Grassley has been an outspoken critic of the practice. He has just released a report into his 2 years of inquiries into medical ghostwriting.
Continue reading→Worrying scientific illiteracy among our elected representatives
Thanks to the wonders of Twitter, I have just found out (via @bengoldacre and @DrEvanHarris) that one of our esteemed elected representatives, David Tredinnick MP, has tabled 3 Early Day Motions singing the praises of homoeopathy.
Continue reading→Papers from the past
I am thrilled to see that the latest issue of The Write Stuff, the journal of the European Medical Writers Association is now published. It is always a fascinating read for those of us involved in medical writing, and although I haven't yet got very far with the current issue, I'm sure it will be no exception. It certainly has some fascinating looking things in its table of contents, and I am thoroughly looking forward to reading it over the coming weekend.
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