Harriet Weeks is a pioneering figure in the field of clinical trials, known for her contributions to the development and implementation of ethical guidelines for human research. She has been a driving force in shaping the way clinical trials are conducted, with a focus on protecting the rights and well-being of participants.
One of Weeks’ most significant contributions is her role in the development of the Declaration of Helsinki, an international ethical guideline for medical research involving human subjects. She was an active member of the World Medical Association’s working group that created the Declaration and helped to ensure that it was grounded in respect for human rights and the principle of informed consent. This document, which is now widely used by researchers around the world, sets out a series of principles that are designed to protect the rights and welfare of study participants, including the need for independent review of research proposals and the requirement for informed consent from all participants.
In addition to her work on the Declaration of Helsinki, Weeks has also been a leading advocate for the use of community advisory boards in clinical trials. These boards are made up of representatives from the community where the trial is taking place, and they are charged with providing input and feedback on the design and conduct of the trial. The goal of this approach is to ensure that the needs and perspectives of the community are taken into account and that the trial is conducted in a way that is sensitive to the cultural and social context of the comm