Medical ethics applied in forensic research: a revisit to ethical guidelines

Abstract

The knowledge on recent advances in research ethics is mandatory for the forensic community comprising mainly forensic pathologists, forensic scientists and members from the legal fraternity who support the smooth functioning of the medico-legal system. A revisit to the recent developments in medical ethics and understanding the implications towards forensic research would keep Sri Lanka in equal platform with other countries. The main objective of this paper is to revisit the recent developments in medical ethics and to understand the ethical principles applied in forensic research. The review article briefly explores the ethical aspects of research involving clinical patients, research involving dead bodies and skeletons, laboratory investigations in research and publications of research findings. The existing ethical norms in research practice had evolved over a long period of times. The sound knowledge of the internationally accepted ethical principles would make sure forensic researches are developed according to the accepted standards and be more scientifically valid.