The Auckland Hospital ethical committee 1977-1981

The experience of the Auckland Hospital ethical committee during the last five years is reviewed. The committee has dealt with an average of 3.6 new applications per month. The research proposals have been classified according to their major thrust. Forty-five point five percent were drug trials, 12.8% were studies of normal and abnormal physiology and metabolism, 12.3% involved the evaluation of new non-drug therapeutic techniques or programmes, 10.1% were epidemiological and the remainder were psychosocial investigations, studies of drug metabolism and turnover, audit and review, or miscellaneous in nature. The majority of applications (60.4%) were approved unaltered or with only very minor amendments at their first consideration. Thirty-six point four percent were approved subject to the imposition of certain conditions or after revision, and 3.2% were either not approved at all or were withdrawn. Major ethical issues which attracted the committee's attention are briefly outlined and its reaction reported.