It looks at the need to gather information to improve people's understanding in this area. As a direct result of the Asian regional meeting on women's perspectives we are currently undertaking a study to assess the acceptability, service delivery requirements and use-effectiveness of the diaphragm in selected developing countries. In the area of fertility regulation, informed consent is required for the conducting of research involving human subjects, and also, in some countries, for the carrying out of certain procedures such as tubal ligation, or the insertion of intrauterine devices or subcutaneous implants. Little is known about either the extent to which informed consent is honoured by researchers and health practitioners, or the extent to which research subjects or users of health services understand their rights. Informed consent is based on the principle that competent individuals are entitled to choose freely whether to participate in research.
Informed consent protects the individual's freedom of choice and respects the individual's autonomy.
Prospective research subjects must be given essential information enabling them to make an informed decision, and investigators have a duty to both communicate such information and ensure that the participant has understood the information. The same principles apply in the case of regular health services providing already approved methods of fertility regulation. Informed consent in health services. The extent to which health service practitioners ensure that informed consent is sought before an intervention. - The timing and other circumstances surrounding the consent process. While the design and execution of the research is being done in a collaborative effort involving researchers, women's health advocacy groups, and policy-makers, the results of the research are expected to provide relevant information for the design and implementation of educational programmes to improve both health providers' and clients' understanding of the process of informed consent, and their rights and responsibilities.