FAQs

1. Why do health services researchers and health policy analysts need to be concerned about conflicts of interest?

Health services researchers and health policy analysts will inevitably be faced with conflicts of interest. Conflicts of interest can easily occur in the current research environment where research endeavors are increasingly commercial, take place in a variety of settings, involve various stakeholders, often draw on multiple funding sources, and involve judgment where bias and passions can affect data. Conflicts can also occur when research touches upon topics in which the individual has taken a strong policy or advocacy position. Conflicts of interest that arise can threaten the integrity and credibility of the research, researchers, funders and the fields as a whole. As such, it is important that researchers can identify conflicts of interest and know how to manage them when they do arise.

2. What are some examples of the types of conflicts of interest facing health services researchers and analysts?

• A funder that tries to influence a researcher's analysis in a project to ensure its "agenda" is met.
  
• Balancing complete disclosure of methods with the protection of intellectual property.
  
• A sponsor limits dissemination of certain findings, with an unstated implication that should the findings be released, future funding could be jeopardized.
  
• A researcher, in his or her spare time, serves in an advocacy role on the subject of his or her research; deciding just how to present one’s activities in each realm may require careful thought and negotiation.

3. What disciplines and organizations do the guidelines address?

The guidelines address the broad array of disciplines within the fields of health services research and health policy analysis. Individuals and organizations to which these guidelines could be relevant include: health services researchers, policy analysts, funding organizations, publishers of health services research and health policy, academic institutions, government, non-profit organizations, research centers, and think tanks.

4. Are the guidelines intended to supplant existing university or organizational conflict of interest guidelines?

No. The guidelines are intended to complement existing university or organizational conflict of interest guidelines, which often focus on more clinical research. In the absence of guidelines, AcademyHealth urges individual health services researchers, their home organizations, and journals that publish health services research to adopt these guidelines and use them to inform development of their own policies and practices. In addition, these guidelines can be used to inform the revision of existing policies that need updating.

5. What role did AcademyHealth play in the development of the ethical guidelines?

At the request of its board, AcademyHealth convened a committee, Chaired by Ezekiel Emanuel, M.D., Ph.D., Director, Dept. of Clinical Bioethics at the National Institutes of Health, to develop ethical guidelines to manage conflicts of interest. Comprising individuals from a variety of organizations and a wide range of disciplines, the committee developed the guidelines over a two-year consensus-building process. This process included a review of conflicts of interest case studies, as well as a review of other professional societies' ethical guidelines.

6. What authority does AcademyHealth have to enforce these guidelines?

AcademyHealth has no enforcement authority. The guidelines are intended to serve as recommendations, not mandates. Nevertheless, they can serve as a backdrop against which individuals and institutions can evaluate their own behavior, update their policies, educate their trainees, and guide the management of difficult ethical situations. AcademyHealth believes a set of ethical guidelines outlining acceptable behavior will serve health services researchers and health policy analysts well by helping them to identify and manage potential conflicts of interest. In addition, these guidelines can be used for teaching health services researchers in training.

7. What's next?

AcademyHealth will conduct programs and develop additional resources, including educational tools, to inform the field about managing conflicts of interest in health services research and health policy analysis. AcademyHealth will also work with health services researchers, journals, and funders to apply the ethical guidelines to their settings and incorporate them into their policies.

8. Where can I go for more information?

Visit the Web site at www.academyhealth.org to view the full ethical guideline report or contact AcademyHealth at 202-292-6700, ethics@academyhealth.org.