Ethics for life sciences engineers

The principle of Justice states that researchers have a duty to ensure a fair distribution of risks and benefits across society.  But, are all social groups treated equally in life sciences research?  This question is explored through a gender lens (though the issues raised may well apply to other minoritised populations).  In clinical trials, for example, women were long excluded due to risks of impacts on potentially pregnant participants as well as due to the impacts of menstrual cycles on data.  This means many medications were released without being tested on women.  Similar issues exist for other minoritised populations. 

There is also evidence of other factors impacting on the extent to which women benefit from life sciences research.  These include a lack of focus on women’s health issues (particularly those that don’t relate explicitly to fertility and childbirth) in life sciences research and development; a perception that research in women’s health is complex and costly (recruitment of subjects, increased insurance costs, etc.); and biases in investors which limit their engagement with Femtech, especially when it involves women leads and is framed in terms of women’s rights.

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