Research ethics
Read the topic background here, then explore the labeled visual and structured learning explanations on this page.
Read explanation on this page ↓ See diagram ↓Research ethics — on-site reading
An introductory overview for this topic. The article introduction is reproduced here, so you do not need to leave MedAtlas to read it. It may not match the latest official medical guidance.
Research ethics is a discipline within the study of applied ethics. Its scope ranges from general scientific integrity and misconduct to the treatment of human and animal subjects. The social responsibilities of scientists and researchers are not traditionally included and are less well defined.
The discipline is most developed in medical research. Beyond the issues of falsification, fabrication, and plagiarism that arise in every scientific field, research design, human subject research, and animal testing are the areas that most often raise ethical questions.
The list of historic cases includes many large-scale violations and crimes against humanity such as Nazi human experimentation and the Tuskegee syphilis experiment which led to international codes of research ethics. No approach has been universally accepted, but typically cited codes are the 1947 Nuremberg Code, the 1964 Declaration of Helsinki, and the 1978 Belmont Report.
Today, research ethics committees, such as those of the US, UK, and EU, govern and oversee the responsible conduct of research. One major goal being to reduce questionable research practices.
Research in other fields such as social sciences, information technology, biotechnology, or engineering may generate ethical concerns.
How this connects to Community Medicine
Research integrity requires transparent methods, ethical approval where applicable, valid informed consent and protection of confidential data. Authors must report limitations and distinguish a planned analysis from post-hoc findings; a checklist does not remove conflicts of interest or flawed design.
Text credit: Wikipedia contributors, “Research ethics”, original article · authors & revision history · CC BY-SA 4.0. Unmodified opening extract, accessed 24 September 2026. This Wikipedia-derived section is provided under CC BY-SA 4.0; the independent MedAtlas notes and design are separate works.
Research ethics · visual study map
Scalable vector illustration. Labeled conceptual map, not a precise anatomical, histological or diagnostic image.The wording in this learning map is adapted from the attributed Wikipedia background section below (CC BY-SA 4.0).
What the underlying subject studies
Community medicine studies health in populations, including how disease occurs, how it can be prevented and how services reach people. Define the population and time period before interpreting counts, rates, proportions or observed associations.
How mechanisms and evidence connect
Screening, surveillance, vaccination and health-system interventions have benefits, costs and possible harms. Methods must account for selection, confounding, measurement error and inequalities in access.
How to develop a sound explanation
Organize an issue as magnitude, determinants, prevention, implementation and evaluation. Community-level policy or study evidence may not directly apply to an individual patient or a different population.
References and verification (optional)
All reading material on this page appears above. The links below are for checking the primary syllabus, research or source attribution, not requirements for opening this lesson.
NMC official CBME Curriculum 2024 and current regulations index ↗