Research Ethics Reimagined

In this episode of “Research Ethics Reimagined,” we speak with Willyanne DeCormier Plosky, DrPH, and Blythe Chen, MPH, of The Multi-Regional Clinical Trials Center of Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard (MRCT Center) about the evolving legal landscape for clinical trials following the 2022 Dobbs decision, and how varying state laws around reproductive health create new privacy considerations for participants. The guests describe MRCT Center's related research and their Pregnancy Privacy Protections for Participants (P4) Toolkit, a set of resources designed to help researchers and Institutional Review Boards (IRBs) improve informed consent language and communicate clearly with participants.

In this episode of PRIM&R’s podcast, “Research Ethics Reimagined,” we explore a model for community-engaged research in Augusta, Georgia that brings together an Institutional Review Board (IRB), researchers, and a trusted community partner. Host Ivy Tillman speaks with a four-guest panel to discuss how the partnership grew from efforts to address research mistrust rooted in the legacy of the Tuskegee study. Together, they examine why researchers must build relationships with communities long before recruitment, and discuss how sustained collaboration can advance the trustworthiness of the research enterprise. Panelists: Malcolm Bevel, PhD; Tiffany Coleman; Bianca Marsh; and Corey Rogers.

In this episode of PRIM&R’s podcast, "Research Ethics Reimagined," we explore the methodology, ethics, and future of public opinion research with David Dutwin, PhD, Executive Director and Senior Vice President of AmeriSpeak at NORC at the University of Chicago. Dr. Dutwin is a senior fellow with the program for opinion research and election studies at the University of Pennsylvania. He is a nationally recognized survey methodologist. For more than 20 years, he has taught courses in survey research and design, political polling, research methods, rhetorical theory, media effects, and other courses as an adjunct professor at the University of Pennsylvania, the University of Arizona, and West Chester University. He discusses how probability-based sampling underpins scientifically valid survey research, the safeguards that protect participants in sensitive surveys, and how artificial intelligence is reshaping the field.

In this episode of PRIM&R's podcast, "Research Ethics Reimagined," we explore the inclusion of individuals with disabilities in research with Nancy Olson, JD, IRB. Olson serves as an analyst at the University of Nebraska Medical Center and is the recipient of PRIM&R's 2024 Service Award. Drawing on more than two decades of experience in human research protections and her own lived experience as a person who became deaf, Olson discusses how assumptions about disability shape — and often limit — who gets to participate in research. She examines the responsibilities of both researchers and IRBs in designing accessible studies and calls for a shift from compliance-focused thinking to genuine participant-centered preparation.

In this episode of PRIM&R's podcast, "Research Ethics Reimagined," we explore the philosophical foundations of research ethics and the challenges of deploying artificial intelligence in medicine with Alex John London, K&L Gates Professor of Ethics and Computational Technologies at Carnegie Mellon University, where he directs the Center for Ethics and Policy. Professor London discusses his book “For the Common Good,” which argues that justice should be the foundational principle of research ethics. Professor London also offers his assessment of AI's promise and limitations in healthcare.