Pub Date : 2020-12-15DOI: 10.7196/SAJBL.2020.V13I2.00711
J. Laurens, P. Carstens
Abstract: Background : Prohibited substance regulation and compliance testing programmes are required to minimise risks to health and safety in the workplace due to inappropriate use of legal (alcohol, cannabis) and illegal substances. A compliance drug test is in principle an invasive biomedical intervention which infringes on the autonomy and other rights of the individual giving rise to ethical dilemmas. Objectives: The principalism approach by Beauchamp and Childress was employed to reason and motivate for the minimum ethical requirements for this type of biomedical intervention. Methods: The ethical aspects relevant to the mandatory guidelines of the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration of the United States of America (SAMHSA) protocols and procedures were extracted and interpreted with reference to the principalism approach. Results : The principalism approach was found to be highly applicable to the ethical requirements of a prohibited substance regulation and testing programme. Conclusion: Ethical dilemmas could be explained and motivated by using the four principles of respect for autonomy, beneficence, non-maleficence and justice as a starting point.
{"title":"Prohibited substance regulation and compliance testing: A principalism approach","authors":"J. Laurens, P. Carstens","doi":"10.7196/SAJBL.2020.V13I2.00711","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.7196/SAJBL.2020.V13I2.00711","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract: Background : Prohibited substance regulation and compliance testing programmes are required to minimise risks to health and safety in the workplace due to inappropriate use of legal (alcohol, cannabis) and illegal substances. A compliance drug test is in principle an invasive biomedical intervention which infringes on the autonomy and other rights of the individual giving rise to ethical dilemmas. Objectives: The principalism approach by Beauchamp and Childress was employed to reason and motivate for the minimum ethical requirements for this type of biomedical intervention. Methods: The ethical aspects relevant to the mandatory guidelines of the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration of the United States of America (SAMHSA) protocols and procedures were extracted and interpreted with reference to the principalism approach. Results : The principalism approach was found to be highly applicable to the ethical requirements of a prohibited substance regulation and testing programme. Conclusion: Ethical dilemmas could be explained and motivated by using the four principles of respect for autonomy, beneficence, non-maleficence and justice as a starting point.","PeriodicalId":43498,"journal":{"name":"South African Journal of Bioethics and Law","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.9,"publicationDate":"2020-12-15","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"47820148","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2020-12-15DOI: 10.7196/SAJBL.2020.V13I2.00731
D. Masege, A. Dhai
Managed healthcare has become the cornerstone of health service delivery in the private sector in South Africa and the world over. As a result, managed care organizations and medical aid schemes have had to draw up recommended treatment protocols in accordance with the rules and regulations of the Council for Medical Schemes (CMS). T he protocols are rigid, do not always consider each case on its own merit and do not always benefit the members of the respective schemes . The purpose of the protocols is to determine which treatment options constitute essential medical care, costeffective treatment and which ones do not. The article examines the fiduciary duties of the medical aids and the existing relationship between the managed healthcare company and the members in a trustee-beneficiary duty of loyalty.
{"title":"Managed healthcare: Treatment protocols and fiduciary duties of funders","authors":"D. Masege, A. Dhai","doi":"10.7196/SAJBL.2020.V13I2.00731","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.7196/SAJBL.2020.V13I2.00731","url":null,"abstract":"Managed healthcare has become the cornerstone of health service delivery in the private sector in South Africa and the world over. As a result, managed care organizations and medical aid schemes have had to draw up recommended treatment protocols in accordance with the rules and regulations of the Council for Medical Schemes (CMS). T he protocols are rigid, do not always consider each case on its own merit and do not always benefit the members of the respective schemes . The purpose of the protocols is to determine which treatment options constitute essential medical care, costeffective treatment and which ones do not. The article examines the fiduciary duties of the medical aids and the existing relationship between the managed healthcare company and the members in a trustee-beneficiary duty of loyalty.","PeriodicalId":43498,"journal":{"name":"South African Journal of Bioethics and Law","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.9,"publicationDate":"2020-12-15","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"45363329","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2020-10-19DOI: 10.7196/SAJBL.2020.V13I2.00725
B. Townsend, M. Mars, R. Scott
The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has raised interest in the application of e-health or d-health (digital health) innovations throughout the world. Many countries have rapidly developed, refined or retooled e-health solutions and existing legislation and guidelines to permit their swift implementation. It is anticipated that these events will stimulate sustained change in the interest in and use of e-health (e.g. telehealth, telemedicine, m-health (mobile health), e-learning and health informatics). The stance of the Health Professions Council of South Africa (HPCSA) has hampered this response, initially even in the face of the pandemic. This article reviews recent events in SA, relevant World Medical Association statements and international COVID-19-related responses. It concludes that the HPCSA must acknowledge global experience, and provide SA with clear, evidence-based and clinically practicable guidelines that promote and sustain the use of telemedicine broadly, now and post COVID-19.
{"title":"The HPCSA’s telemedicine guidance during COVID-19: A review","authors":"B. Townsend, M. Mars, R. Scott","doi":"10.7196/SAJBL.2020.V13I2.00725","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.7196/SAJBL.2020.V13I2.00725","url":null,"abstract":"The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has raised interest in the application of e-health or d-health (digital health) innovations throughout the world. Many countries have rapidly developed, refined or retooled e-health solutions and existing legislation and guidelines to permit their swift implementation. It is anticipated that these events will stimulate sustained change in the interest in and use of e-health (e.g. telehealth, telemedicine, m-health (mobile health), e-learning and health informatics). The stance of the Health Professions Council of South Africa (HPCSA) has hampered this response, initially even in the face of the pandemic. This article reviews recent events in SA, relevant World Medical Association statements and international COVID-19-related responses. It concludes that the HPCSA must acknowledge global experience, and provide SA with clear, evidence-based and clinically practicable guidelines that promote and sustain the use of telemedicine broadly, now and post COVID-19.","PeriodicalId":43498,"journal":{"name":"South African Journal of Bioethics and Law","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.9,"publicationDate":"2020-10-19","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"42568519","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2020-07-07DOI: 10.7196/SAJBL.2020.V13I1.00709
B. Shozi
In the wake of the advent of genome editing technology CRISPR-Cas9, there has been a global debate around the implications of manipulating the human genome. While CRISPR-based germline gene editing is new, the debate about the ethics of gene editing is not – for several decades now, scholars have debated the ethics of making heritable changes to the human genome. The arguments that have been raised both for and against the use of genetic technologies in human reproduction reiterate much of the arguments made in the pre-CRISPR debate. As such, it is instructive for South Africa to reflect on these arguments now, in considering our position on the regulation of the use of this novel biotechnology. There are two dominant schools of thought in this area, bioliberalism and bioconservatism. Bioconservatives raise concerns about the risks of genetic manipulation and argue that it ought to be limited or prohibited to avert these risks to human health and human nature. Bioliberal scholars are more open to the prospect of genetic manipulation because of its potential utility. In this paper, I conclude that in liberal democracies like our own, bioliberal arguments ought to be seriously considered when formulating policy on human genome editing because of the extent to which they resonate with our Constitutional values and human rights. I further suggest that there is a need for an enquiry into the relevance of African perspectives on the ethical questions that arise concerning germline genome editing.
{"title":"A critical review of the ethical and legal issues in human germline gene editing: Considering human rights and a call for an African perspective","authors":"B. Shozi","doi":"10.7196/SAJBL.2020.V13I1.00709","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.7196/SAJBL.2020.V13I1.00709","url":null,"abstract":"In the wake of the advent of genome editing technology CRISPR-Cas9, there has been a global debate around the implications of manipulating the human genome. While CRISPR-based germline gene editing is new, the debate about the ethics of gene editing is not – for several decades now, scholars have debated the ethics of making heritable changes to the human genome. The arguments that have been raised both for and against the use of genetic technologies in human reproduction reiterate much of the arguments made in the pre-CRISPR debate. As such, it is instructive for South Africa to reflect on these arguments now, in considering our position on the regulation of the use of this novel biotechnology. There are two dominant schools of thought in this area, bioliberalism and bioconservatism. Bioconservatives raise concerns about the risks of genetic manipulation and argue that it ought to be limited or prohibited to avert these risks to human health and human nature. Bioliberal scholars are more open to the prospect of genetic manipulation because of its potential utility. In this paper, I conclude that in liberal democracies like our own, bioliberal arguments ought to be seriously considered when formulating policy on human genome editing because of the extent to which they resonate with our Constitutional values and human rights. I further suggest that there is a need for an enquiry into the relevance of African perspectives on the ethical questions that arise concerning germline genome editing.","PeriodicalId":43498,"journal":{"name":"South African Journal of Bioethics and Law","volume":"13 1","pages":"62-67"},"PeriodicalIF":0.9,"publicationDate":"2020-07-07","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"46695898","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2020-07-07DOI: 10.7196/SAJBL.2020.V13I1.00686
C. Nnaji, S. Adams, L. London
Background The burden of drug-resistant tuberculosis (DR-TB) remains high in South Africa despite ongoing control efforts. DR-TB patients who are infectious and continue to work pose a substantial risk of spreading the disease at the workplace. When such patients refuse or interrupt treatment and are also unwilling to disclose their status at work they pose an infectious risk in the workplace, creating a conflict between public health good and individual human rights. Should health-workers breach confidentiality and disclose patients’ DR-TB status, or take no action while patients pose transmission risks in occupational settings? Objectives To provide professional and ethical guidance for health workers in dealing with non-consensual disclosure of DR-TB status of patients who are unwilling to disclose, continue to go to work and remain infectious. Methods A comprehensive literature search was conducted to draw on evidence relating to public health best practices and human rights normative standards. We used the findings, along with guidance from DR-TB programme managers, clinicians, occupational health physicians and human rights lawyers to develop an occupational health protocol for disclosure. Results This protocol establishes the normative, ethical and legal framework for dealing with the complexities of non-consensual disclosure and provides a set of practical standard operative procedures for health-workers in the South African setting. It also provides a legal safeguard to protect health-workers from potential litigation that may result from such duty. Conclusion Non-consensual disclosure to address the spread of DR-TB in occupational settings should be based on professional, ethical and legally-sound guidance for health-workers.
{"title":"Non-consensual disclosure of infectious drug resistant tuberculosis status in the occupational context: Health workers stuck between a rock and a hard place","authors":"C. Nnaji, S. Adams, L. London","doi":"10.7196/SAJBL.2020.V13I1.00686","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.7196/SAJBL.2020.V13I1.00686","url":null,"abstract":"Background The burden of drug-resistant tuberculosis (DR-TB) remains high in South Africa despite ongoing control efforts. DR-TB patients who are infectious and continue to work pose a substantial risk of spreading the disease at the workplace. When such patients refuse or interrupt treatment and are also unwilling to disclose their status at work they pose an infectious risk in the workplace, creating a conflict between public health good and individual human rights. Should health-workers breach confidentiality and disclose patients’ DR-TB status, or take no action while patients pose transmission risks in occupational settings? Objectives To provide professional and ethical guidance for health workers in dealing with non-consensual disclosure of DR-TB status of patients who are unwilling to disclose, continue to go to work and remain infectious. Methods A comprehensive literature search was conducted to draw on evidence relating to public health best practices and human rights normative standards. We used the findings, along with guidance from DR-TB programme managers, clinicians, occupational health physicians and human rights lawyers to develop an occupational health protocol for disclosure. Results This protocol establishes the normative, ethical and legal framework for dealing with the complexities of non-consensual disclosure and provides a set of practical standard operative procedures for health-workers in the South African setting. It also provides a legal safeguard to protect health-workers from potential litigation that may result from such duty. Conclusion Non-consensual disclosure to address the spread of DR-TB in occupational settings should be based on professional, ethical and legally-sound guidance for health-workers.","PeriodicalId":43498,"journal":{"name":"South African Journal of Bioethics and Law","volume":"13 1","pages":"34-42"},"PeriodicalIF":0.9,"publicationDate":"2020-07-07","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"46713332","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2020-07-07DOI: 10.7196/SAJBL.2020.V13I1.00690
J. Mathibe-Neke
ABSTRACT Background In response to an increasing number of litigations relating to nursing care errors, negligence or acts and omissions that arise mostly due to unprofessional or unethical behaviour compounded by the growing awareness of patient’s rights, nurse practitioners as such need an intervention by the regulatory body, the South African Nursing Council (SANC). Aim and purpose The argument presented pertains to the obligatory role of SANC as a regulatory body to uphold professional and ethical practice for nurses in terms of the nursing curriculum, the scope of practice, the code of ethics and continuing professional development. Methodology The methodology was based on the analysis of relevant SANC legislation under the provision of the Nursing Act 33 of 2005 as amended. Document review, a technique used to “categorise, investigate, interpret and identify limitations of written documents” was undertaken. The study referenced some of the general literature relating to nursing ethics and professionalism. A waiver for ethical clearance was obtained from the Human Research Ethics Committee. Conclusion The overall impact of the analysis lies in its contribution to enhancing nursing practice, with specific focus on upholding professional and ethical practice. SANC as a custodian of the nursing profession need to address limitations and develop a balance for the regulation and monitoring of ethical practice in both nursing education and clinical practice. Keywords: ethical practice; normative analysis; nursing profession; role; South African Nursing Council
{"title":"Ethical practice in the nursing profession: A normative analysis","authors":"J. Mathibe-Neke","doi":"10.7196/SAJBL.2020.V13I1.00690","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.7196/SAJBL.2020.V13I1.00690","url":null,"abstract":"ABSTRACT Background In response to an increasing number of litigations relating to nursing care errors, negligence or acts and omissions that arise mostly due to unprofessional or unethical behaviour compounded by the growing awareness of patient’s rights, nurse practitioners as such need an intervention by the regulatory body, the South African Nursing Council (SANC). Aim and purpose The argument presented pertains to the obligatory role of SANC as a regulatory body to uphold professional and ethical practice for nurses in terms of the nursing curriculum, the scope of practice, the code of ethics and continuing professional development. Methodology The methodology was based on the analysis of relevant SANC legislation under the provision of the Nursing Act 33 of 2005 as amended. Document review, a technique used to “categorise, investigate, interpret and identify limitations of written documents” was undertaken. The study referenced some of the general literature relating to nursing ethics and professionalism. A waiver for ethical clearance was obtained from the Human Research Ethics Committee. Conclusion The overall impact of the analysis lies in its contribution to enhancing nursing practice, with specific focus on upholding professional and ethical practice. SANC as a custodian of the nursing profession need to address limitations and develop a balance for the regulation and monitoring of ethical practice in both nursing education and clinical practice. Keywords: ethical practice; normative analysis; nursing profession; role; South African Nursing Council","PeriodicalId":43498,"journal":{"name":"South African Journal of Bioethics and Law","volume":"1 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.9,"publicationDate":"2020-07-07","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"41714895","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2020-07-07DOI: 10.7196/SAJBL.2020.V13I1.00724
C. Grobler
The COVID-19 pandemic may result in ‘moral injury’ and mental illness to health care workers (HCWs). Resources may at some point run out and situations may arise where difficult ethical decisions need to be made. Properly preparing staff for the job and the associated challenges reduces the risk of moral injury and mental health problems. Under conditions of information overload and uncertainty-related anxiety such as with the COVID-19 pandemic, doctors may stop acting with clinical equipoise and make cognitive errors. These circumstances require doctors to be the voice of reason and lead by example. Doctors must reason critically, be aware of the biases that may influence thinking processes and critically appraise evidence in deciding how to treat patients. Health care systems must address the stress of HCW’s by continuously monitoring reactions and and creating mechanisms to offer psychosocial support.
{"title":"COVID-19: Mental health and clinical equipoise in the face of moral injury","authors":"C. Grobler","doi":"10.7196/SAJBL.2020.V13I1.00724","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.7196/SAJBL.2020.V13I1.00724","url":null,"abstract":"The COVID-19 pandemic may result in ‘moral injury’ and mental illness to health care workers (HCWs). Resources may at some point run out and situations may arise where difficult ethical decisions need to be made. Properly preparing staff for the job and the associated challenges reduces the risk of moral injury and mental health problems. Under conditions of information overload and uncertainty-related anxiety such as with the COVID-19 pandemic, doctors may stop acting with clinical equipoise and make cognitive errors. These circumstances require doctors to be the voice of reason and lead by example. Doctors must reason critically, be aware of the biases that may influence thinking processes and critically appraise evidence in deciding how to treat patients. Health care systems must address the stress of HCW’s by continuously monitoring reactions and and creating mechanisms to offer psychosocial support.","PeriodicalId":43498,"journal":{"name":"South African Journal of Bioethics and Law","volume":"13 1","pages":"21-22"},"PeriodicalIF":0.9,"publicationDate":"2020-07-07","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"49242740","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2020-07-07DOI: 10.7196/SAJBL.2020.V13I1.00684
S. S. Mkumbugo, J. Shayo, D. Mloka
Background: In Tanzania, about 8,000 girls drop out of schools due to pregnancy every year and it has been reported that this group is faced with discrimination. Mishandling of pregnant adolescents may be reason for discrimination and may lead them to opt for risky actions such as unsafe abortion, abandonment of newborns and even suicide. Objectives: The study aimed to explore the moral challenges in handling pregnant school adolescents in Tanga municipality, Tanzania. Methods: This was an exploratory study which used criterion type of purposive sampling and qualitative methods of data collection. Content analysis methods ware used to obtain themes from data scripts. Results: A total of 21 participants were involved which include teachers, parents/guardians, community leaders and religious scholars. Three main themes were obtained: Parent’s decision on the fate of pregnant school adolescents; education policy and laws with regards to school pregnant cases, and discrimination in handling pregnant school adolescents. Conclusion: From the findings of this study, it is concluded that; there are moral challenges in handling pregnant school adolescents as result of implementation of education policy, laws and community culture that breach bioethical principles. The study recommended that; the government should revise the current education regulations to eliminate the sense of gender discrimination and to promote equality in education.
{"title":"Moral challenges in handling pregnant school adolescents in Tanga municipality, Tanzania","authors":"S. S. Mkumbugo, J. Shayo, D. Mloka","doi":"10.7196/SAJBL.2020.V13I1.00684","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.7196/SAJBL.2020.V13I1.00684","url":null,"abstract":"Background: In Tanzania, about 8,000 girls drop out of schools due to pregnancy every year and it has been reported that this group is faced with discrimination. Mishandling of pregnant adolescents may be reason for discrimination and may lead them to opt for risky actions such as unsafe abortion, abandonment of newborns and even suicide. Objectives: The study aimed to explore the moral challenges in handling pregnant school adolescents in Tanga municipality, Tanzania. Methods: This was an exploratory study which used criterion type of purposive sampling and qualitative methods of data collection. Content analysis methods ware used to obtain themes from data scripts. Results: A total of 21 participants were involved which include teachers, parents/guardians, community leaders and religious scholars. Three main themes were obtained: Parent’s decision on the fate of pregnant school adolescents; education policy and laws with regards to school pregnant cases, and discrimination in handling pregnant school adolescents. Conclusion: From the findings of this study, it is concluded that; there are moral challenges in handling pregnant school adolescents as result of implementation of education policy, laws and community culture that breach bioethical principles. The study recommended that; the government should revise the current education regulations to eliminate the sense of gender discrimination and to promote equality in education.","PeriodicalId":43498,"journal":{"name":"South African Journal of Bioethics and Law","volume":"13 1","pages":"68-72"},"PeriodicalIF":0.9,"publicationDate":"2020-07-07","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"42084405","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2020-07-07DOI: 10.7196/SAJBL.2020.V13I1.00708
Christopher Stein
Predatory journals are widely acknowledged as a significant problem in scholarly publishing and, more broadly, as a threat to the responsible conduct of research. Because predatory publishers base their operations on deception, it is possible for well-intentioned researchers to unwittingly end up publishing their work in predatory journals. Of a more problematic nature is the behaviour of researchers who intentionally publish in predatory journals as a way of bypassing legitimate peer-review. In such cases it is important to decide what such behaviour constitutes as a way of developing policy aimed at deterrence. The aim of this study was to answer the question of whether intentional publishing in predatory journals can be considered a form of scientific misconduct, based on the critical application of four conditions taken as being requirements for this. It is not currently possible to satisfy all four conditions that would include intentional predatory publishing as a form of scientific misconduct. However, there are grounds to argue that this behaviour satisfies the definition of a questionable research practice. Regardless of exactly where intentional predatory publishing is placed in the spectrum of unethical research behaviours, there is an urgent need for coherent institutional policy to effectively deal with it and, more broadly, naive publishing in predatory journals.
{"title":"Is intentional publishing in predatory journals a form of scientific misconduct?","authors":"Christopher Stein","doi":"10.7196/SAJBL.2020.V13I1.00708","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.7196/SAJBL.2020.V13I1.00708","url":null,"abstract":"Predatory journals are widely acknowledged as a significant problem in scholarly publishing and, more broadly, as a threat to the responsible conduct of research. Because predatory publishers base their operations on deception, it is possible for well-intentioned researchers to unwittingly end up publishing their work in predatory journals. Of a more problematic nature is the behaviour of researchers who intentionally publish in predatory journals as a way of bypassing legitimate peer-review. In such cases it is important to decide what such behaviour constitutes as a way of developing policy aimed at deterrence. The aim of this study was to answer the question of whether intentional publishing in predatory journals can be considered a form of scientific misconduct, based on the critical application of four conditions taken as being requirements for this. It is not currently possible to satisfy all four conditions that would include intentional predatory publishing as a form of scientific misconduct. However, there are grounds to argue that this behaviour satisfies the definition of a questionable research practice. Regardless of exactly where intentional predatory publishing is placed in the spectrum of unethical research behaviours, there is an urgent need for coherent institutional policy to effectively deal with it and, more broadly, naive publishing in predatory journals.","PeriodicalId":43498,"journal":{"name":"South African Journal of Bioethics and Law","volume":"13 1","pages":"57-61"},"PeriodicalIF":0.9,"publicationDate":"2020-07-07","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"41855644","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2020-07-07DOI: 10.7196/SAJBL.2020.V13I1.00737
A. Dhai
{"title":"The need to invest in pandemic preparedness: COVID-19 is not the first pandemic, nor will it be the last","authors":"A. Dhai","doi":"10.7196/SAJBL.2020.V13I1.00737","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.7196/SAJBL.2020.V13I1.00737","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":43498,"journal":{"name":"South African Journal of Bioethics and Law","volume":"13 1","pages":"3-4"},"PeriodicalIF":0.9,"publicationDate":"2020-07-07","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"48214935","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
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