Informed consent with children.

Abstract

Carolyn L. Walker, RN, PhD, is an Assistant Professor in the School of Nursing at San Diego State University in San Diego, California. Historical Perspective The need for guidelines to protect human research subjects originated from the trials of Nazi physicians in Nuremberg. The major defense for those physicians was that they were conducting important scientific research. In an effort to judge their conduct against standards for clinical research, Dr. Andrew Ivy wrote a code of ethics for scientific experimentation. The code of ethics was accepted by the Nuremberg court and is now known as the &dquo;Nuremberg Laws.&dquo; The Articles of the Nuremberg Tribunal provide ethical guidelines for: (1) the proper nature and design. of medical research; (2) the qualifications, duties and responsibility of the investigator ; and (3) protection of the rights of human subjects.