Research Fraud and Misconduct

RESEARCH FRAUD AND

MISCONDUCT

Dr Zabidi Hussin FRCPCH

Professor of Paediatrics Universiti Sains Malaysia

and Former Council Member of Malaysian Medical Council

(This article is part of an invited lecture delivered by the author in the “National Ethics Seminar” organized by the Academy of Medicine Malaysia on 2nd Dec 2006)

Research fraud, misconduct and misrepresentation are not new phenomena. Various forms of misconducts have occurred throughout history of medicine. One may recall the well publicized Nuremberg Trial when numerous forms of misconducts and human experimentations were exposed purportedly committed by Nazis. The cases of unethical research on stem cell by Dr Hwang Woo-Suk and 6 Korean professors are the more recent examples of misconduct in the 21^st century, citing their ‘blinded desire for achievements’ and work as their reason for misconduct. This reflects many more unspoken reasons for similar conducts by other researchers throughout the scientific world. As a consequence, legislations have been formulated over the past 50 years to safeguard the general population against possible unethical researches. However as new demand for research become necessary, newer forms of misconducts became known, requiring a complete revisit of the subject.

Research demands creation of new knowledge, and requires ‘careful, patience, systematic and diligent inquiry’ into a problem in order to establish the truth. As many of these attributes are subject to human fallacies, the temptation for a lesser and easier option frequently arise, leading to the various forms of misconducts.

Among the forms of misconducts are:

• Misappropriation of ideas, or funds
• Not complying with International Guidelines and Principles on Research Ethics
• Unable to protect human subjects or animals
• Fabrication, falsification, plagiarism ,data fraud- ‘Statistical Gymnastics’
• Not respecting guidelines on publication and authorship, double submission, false declaration
• Denial of publication of rightful articles
• Misleading the Ethics Committee- methodology, sample size, budget allocation, honorarium payment to subjects and to researchers, conflict of interest of members of committee
• Breach of research protocol- recruitment of subjects, randomization, blinding,

Recent developments among the scientific community in Malaysia may also contribute to the tendency of research misconduct. Among these are:

• Intense competition for Research Institution/University status and the ‘reward’ such status brings
• Personal gain and glory and a possible overcompensation for research achievements either in the forms of monetary rewards or research exhibition medals
• Corporate intrusion into research and academic freedom undermining foundations of scientific inquiry
• ‘Publish or perish culture’ cultivated in universities and research institutions to encourage healthy research competitions among researchers
• Intense desire to patent and commercialize research achievements and research findings

In order to safeguard possible opportunities for research fraud and misconduct, the following measures may be considered appropriate and necessary:

• Revisit the purpose of research, revival of altruisms in research objectives and minimizing unhealthy corporate intrusion in academia
• Strengthen Ethical Research Guidelines and upgrade the guidelines into Acts of Law wherever appropriate
• Laws and legislations (Copyright Laws, Breach of Trust. Fraud ,Medical Act etc) ought to be revised to include research issues
• Institutional Review Boards to be made more transparent and accountable for their decisions
• Composition of Review Boards ought to be carefully chosen to maintain independence in decision-making with greater participation of the general public
• Role of Medical Council to be expanded and be made explicit to include research misconduct
• Public Auditing of Research with ‘Annual Reports on Research Approval’ be made accessible to the general public
• Independent research auditors and ombudsman to receive complaints related to medical research. Research frauds are currently underreported worldwide
• Research findings to be made public and not only confined to medical fraternity. This is important for research scrutiny
• Establishment of an independent body called Medical Research Monitoring Committee – multisectorial representation where research annual reports are highlighted to safeguard public interest
• Facilitate publication of research findings especially by young researchers through increasing use of ‘Open-Access’ electronic journals. Unnecessary difficulties imposed by editors of reputable journals through whatever forms on newer, young researchers may encourage unethical research behaviour by some unscrupulous medical researchers
• Strengthening the number of medical personnel and improving the support system in any particular academic institution so that medical researches are done by personnel who are not too heavily burdened by teaching or provision of clinical service. A system where the same, small number of staff are expected to perform ‘miracles’ by being able to undertake good research in the background of multitude of other commitments ( teaching, clinical service or administrative duties) may inadvertently encourage a medical researcher to be fraudulent for his academic ‘survival’

In the final analysis, the motive for research fraud and misconduct stems from a multitude of factors; from a faulty system to a ‘faulty’ person. Reexaminations of each of these factors will be necessary to eliminate the possibility of fraud and misconduct.

This article was published in ‘Berita Akademi” the Official Newsletter of the Malaysian Academy of Medicine March 2007. It was also presented in the National Ethics Seminar organized by the Academy of Medicine , Malaysia