| dc.description.abstract | Although there should be no ambivalence regarding the importance of the Health and demographic
surveillance System (HDSS), surveillance and research on human populations is beset with a variety
of ethical issues.This is particularly true in the area of global health research, which merits attention in
health policies related to research ethics. The objective of this paper is to analyzethe use of HDSS sites
to obtain data and to resolve ethical conflicts over HDSS approaches, such as those related to data
collection, surveillance, and research.This analysis is donein light of guidance on central ethical issues
relating to health research such as the International Ethical Guidelines for Health Research.This paper
is a critical review of literature of ethics in health and demographic research and surveillance, which has
identified and analyzed the major areas of contemporary ethical concerns with respect to surveillance
and research conducted by HDSS in accordance with existing ethical guidelines for health research.
Concerns addressed in this paper are an overt admonishment about the importance of a range of issues
from informed consent, beneficence, and justice,to advice on the best means to utilizesurveillance data.
Although use of HDSS allows for invaluable contributions by providing longitudinal data for in-depth
understanding of surveillance areas, which indirectly guides policies, programs, and interventions at
national and international levels, studies using this means of gathering data are beset with
multidimensional ethical concerns with respect to the research and surveillance they carry out. Many
of the ethical concerns cannot be resolved under the broader ethical standards set by the major sources
of international ethical guidelines or frameworks.Thus, the paper stresses that different and innovative
lines of thinking and approaches are required for studies employing HDSS to ensure the best ethical
conduct in health research for the improvement of global health. | en_US |
