Paediatricians and other clinicians often have to take very difficult decisions while acting in strict accordance with the law and with sensitivity towards the customs and beliefs practiced by their patients and their patients' families. These resources are intended to support the training and critical thinking of those taking these decisions.
They are focused on the needs of those practicing in the UK.
This is not a complete or exclusive list of resources. We are keen to get information on further resources - please contact the Ethics and Law Advisory Committee with suggestions.
College resources
External resources
Please note the College cannot accept responsibility for the content of websites run by other bodies.
- Clinical law updates - provided by Mr Robert Wheeler, paediatric surgeon and director of the department of clinical law at Southampton. Many clinicians find matters of the law applied to their practice rather intimidating. Many helpful codes of practices from learned bodies and regulatory authorities touch on legal matters and provide excellent guidance, but for those wanting a little more depth without wading through medical law textbooks or court transcripts there is little readily accessible alternative to online media and newspaper law reporting.Of particular relevance to child health are sections on restraining children/Deprivation of liberty, young people refusing blood transfusion and consent
- Guidance on clinical research involving infants, children and young people: an update for researchers and research ethics committees - update to Archives of Disease in Childhood (ADC) guidance for the ethical conduct of medical research involving children (2000).
- British and Irish Legal Information Institute (BAILII) - recording details of legal cases including those relevant to paediatrics and the health and wellbeing of children and young people. This is in the process of being transferred to The National Archives
- Nuffield Council on Bioethics Report - Children and Clinical Research: ethical issues
- The Royal College of Anaesthetists: Consent and Ethics, Children and Young People