COUNCIL NEWS
EDITORIAL by Henry Dinsdale
PBL APPROACH by David Kaufman
PLACEBO: PRO & CON
Pro: by Yvon Lapierre
Con: by Charles Weijer
NEGATIVE STUDIES About this amnesty by John Last
RECENT PUBLICATIONS AND/OR REVIEWS:
   Book Review by Gordon Crelinsten
   Book Review by Jean Noël Ringuet
   Recent Publications
CALENDAR OF EVENTS
NCEHR PUBLICATIONS LIST (1998)

n editorial committee appointed by the Presidents of the three participating research Councils has completed the draft of a final version of the new Tri-Council Policy Statement on Ethical Conduct for Research Involving Humans. The document has been adopted by each Council. We expect its release by the end of next Spring. The next issue of Communiqué will be largely devoted to the document.

Last Spring, Health Canada’s Drug Directorate published the Final Report of a Working Group commissioned to study the regulatory review process for Investigative New Drugs submissions. NCEHR voiced concern about the intent to exempt all Phase I trials from review at governmental level. A workshop will be held in weeks to come to discuss this issue with representatives from NCEHR, the government, the REBs, and the industry. Communiqué will keep you informed of the results.

Along with its name change, NCEHR announces the opening of its Web site. The site will offer important information for Canadian REBs. It will feature an electronic version of Communiqué, a list of REBs and Chairs in order to facilitate networking among the REB community. Early developments are foreseen as we continue to add new information and services. Please look at the site and take time to send us your opinion and suggestions. Note our new e-mail address: ncehr@rcpsc.edu.

Richard Carpentier
Editor

Notice to REBs

To keep our mailing lists current, please inform the NCEHR office of any changes to your committee: i.e. change of chairperson, number of members, change of address, etc

For REBs (particularly non-medical REBs), which were not contacted by us as part of our summer 1997 mailing list update, please forward to us your name, number of members, address, telephone and fax numbers, areas of research ethics review, etc.

NATIONAL COUNCIL ON ETHICS
IN HUMAN RESEARCH (NCEHR):

Henry B. Dinsdale,
President of NCEHR
Kingston, Ontario

Abbyann Lynch,
Past President of NCEHR
Toronto, Ontario

Janet Storch,
Vice President of NCEHR
Victoria, British Columbia

Laura Commanda
Ottawa, Ontario

Gordon L. Crelinsten,
Montreal, Quebec

John Foerster,
Winnipeg, Manitoba

Kathleen Cranley Glass,
Montreal, Quebec

Glenn G.Griener,
Edmonton, Alberta

Carole A. Guzman,
Ottawa, Ontario

Joseph Kaufert,
Winnipeg, Manitoba

Thérèse Leroux,
Montreal, Quebec

Daphne Maurer,
Hamilton, Ontario

Marcel J. Mélançon,
Chicoutimi, Quebec

Fernand Roberge,
Montreal, Quebec

Evelyn Shapiro,
Winnipeg, Manitoba

EDITORIAL BOARD:

Carole A. Guzman ,
Ottawa, Ontario

Kelly Cameron,
Halifax, Nova Scotia

David Kaufman,
Halifax, Nova Scotia

Agnes Klein,
Ottawa, Ontario

John M. Last,
Ottawa, Ontario

Fernand Roberge,
Montreal, Quebec

Richard Carpentier,
Editor in Chief, NCEHR

Bernadette Misigaro,
Associate Editor, NCEHR

Philosophy:

Philosophy: Communiqué serves both as a forum for debate at the core of research ethics and as an official vehicle for Council positions and activities. Views expressed are not always those of the Council. Communiqué aims to have a balance of views in contentious areas, and to provide enlightening reading by seeking several divergent opinions wherever possible. Since research ethics transcends national boundaries, international perspectives and materials are welcome.

Letters to the Editor: Communiqué will carry comments, criticisms or questions about articles published. The original authors will be asked to respond to such letters as appropriate. The editor reserves the right to edit or abridge such letters due to space limitations. To be considered for publication, letters must not exceed 300 words. Decisions as to whether to publish letters to the editor will remain the prerogative of the editor of Communiqué, but if the writer believes that the editor is seriously in error in refusing to publish correspondence, an appeal can be made by the writer to the Chair of the Communications & Education Committee.

Subscriptions: Communiqué is published twice a year by NCEHR. A one-year subscription is $20.00 and a two-year subscription is $35.00. Please make cheques payable to NCEHR Communiqué, National Council on Ethics in Human Research, 774 Echo Drive, Ottawa, Canada K1S 5N8. Tel: (613) 730–6225; Fax: (613) 730–8251; Email: ncehr@rcpsc.edu.