After the Research Is Done: Legal Obligations for Participants in Household Exposure Studies

Julia R. Barrett, MS, ELS, a Madison, WI–based science writer and editor, is a member of the National Association of Science Writers and the Board of Editors in the Life Sciences. About This Article open Citation: Barrett JR. 2016. After the research is done: legal obligations for participants in household exposure studies. Environ Health Perspect 124:A206; http://dx.doi.org/10.1289/124-A206 Published: 1 November 2016 PDF Version (438 KB) Related EHP Article The Legal Implications of Report Back in Household Exposure Studies Shaun A. Goho Household chemical exposure studies are essential for assessing human health risks associated with indoor environments.1 But as in all studies involving human subjects, researchers must strive to ensure that individuals understand the risks incurred by participating in a study.2,3 For household exposure studies, these risks may include legal obligations placed upon participants once they learn of contamination issues in their homes. A new review provides an overview of these potential obligations along with guidance for sharing this information with participants.1 In the past, research participants rarely had the option of having their individual results reported back to them unless those results were clinically significant.2,4 This approach was justified on the presumption that any benefits to the participants could be outweighed by having to grapple with baseless fears or worrisome questions with no answers.3,4 However, ...
Source: EHP Research - Category: Environmental Health Authors: Tags: News Science Selections November 2016 Source Type: research