Paper short abstract:

Informed consent is recommended to insure subjects' autonomy when participating to a research regarding health. Historically linked to medical bioethics, the concept is intrinsically linked to medical knowledge and institutions. But do biomedical ethics cover ethics in medical anthropology?

Paper long abstract:

Informed consent is generally recommended to insure subjects' autonomy when participating to a research regarding health. Historically linked to medical bioethics, the concept is intrinsically linked to medical knowledge and institutions. But do biomedical ethics cover ethics in medical anthropology? This communication intends to answer this question by presenting a comparative approach of consent processes in medical research and anthropological research. This communication is based on a study that took place in Senegal between 2006 and 2008 using an anthropological approach to analyse medical research. Observations of medical research activities and qualitative interviews with participants, investigators and promoters provide data on the consent process in medical research. Field notes as well as personal methodological tools and reflexive analysis are used to describe participant's consent in anthropological research. Analysis of the consent process in medical research shows that it varies according to external factors such as time management, social, economic and epidemiological factors. Even though consent is discussed and organised far before the trial starts, results show that participants' autonomy is not consequently guaranteed. Analysis of the consent process from an anthropological perspective show that the biomedical "informed consent" is hardly usable regarded epistemological, technical as well as local factors related to anthropological methods. An individual approach and a reflexive analysis of interactions were used to collect consent during the research. Implications for ethical review of anthropological projects by committees whose decisions rely on bioethics will be discussed.