Priority Setting for Research in the Field of Medical Ethics in the Islamic Republic of Iran: A Delphi Study; [Determination Des Priorites Pour La Recherche Dans Le Domaine De L’Ethique Medicale En Republique Islamique D’Iran: Etude Selon La Methode De Delphes] Publisher Pubmed



Noroozi M¹ ; Larijani B^{1, 2} ; Nedjat S³ ; Aramesh K^{4, 5} ; Salari P¹ Show Affiliations
Source: Eastern Mediterranean Health Journal Published:2020

Abstract

Background: Priority-setting is one way to develop research in a particular field. Aims: We aimed to identify and prioritize the most important medical ethics issues for research in the Islamic Republic of Iran. Methods: A 3-round Delphi survey was conducted using a questionnaire covering 77 medical ethics topics in 10 categories and subcategories (extracted from literature review); this was emailed to 40 experts in medical ethics. The participants rat-ed categories and subcategories for importance on a 5-point Likert scale and ranked the topics based on their research pri-orities. The highest Likert score showed the most important issue and the lowest priority score indicated the first priority. Results: After consensus, the panel identified 6 categories as the highest priority and most important areas: professionalism [priority score = 2.66, standard deviation (SD) 2.63, importance score = 4.45, SD 0.72], education (priority score= 3.12, SD 1.89, importance score = 4.25, SD 0.84), end of life (priority score = 3.79, SD 1.91, importance score = 4.47, SD 0.66), beginning of life (priority = 4.62, SD 1.68, importance score= 4.26, SD 0.61), public health (priority score = 5.20, SD 2.39, importance score = 4.29, SD 0.75), and ethics in research (priority score = 5.33, SD 1.97, importance score = 4.34, SD 0.64). Conclusion: The rankings for priority and importance was not the same. Our results highlight a lack of applicable knowledge in the areas of professionalism and end of life. This study could be used as a foundation for developing further inves-tigations by ensuring the most appropriate use of limited resources. © World Health Organization (WHO) 2020.