IT IS a moral dilemma that strikes at the heart of modern biomedical ethics – and it is being played out on the roads and streets of US cities.
Over the next few months, certain victims of serious accidents and trauma injuries in these cities will find themselves enrolled in a trial to test an artificial product designed to mimic human blood. And if patients are unconscious or otherwise unable to provide consent? No matter. Trauma doctors involved in the trial will have the authority to enrol them anyway.
Obtaining consent from patients in clinical trials is the bedrock of modern…
