RESEARCH ETHICS EDUCATION IN POST-GRADUATE MEDICAL CURRICULA IN I.R. IRAN NAZILA NIKRAVANFARD, FAEZEH KHORASANIZADEH AND KAZEM ZENDEHDEL Keywords Research Ethics, Education, Post-Graduate, Medical Sciences, Iran ABSTRACT Research ethics training during post-graduate education is necessary to improve ethical standards in the design and conduct of biomedical research. We studied quality and quantity of research ethics training in the curricula of post-graduate programs in the medical science in I.R. Iran. We evaluated curricula of 125 post-graduate programs in medical sciences in I.R. Iran. We qualitatively studied the curricula by education level, includ- ing the Master and PhD degrees and analyzed the contents and the amount of teaching allocated for ethics training in each curriculum. We found no research ethics training in 72 (58%) of the programs. Among the 53 (42%) programs that considered research ethics training, only 17 programs had specific courses for research ethics and eight of them had detailed topics on their courses. The research ethics training was optional in 25% and mandatory in 76% of the programs. Post-graduate studies that were approved in the more recent years had more attention to the research ethics training. Research ethics training was neglected in most of the medical post-gradu- ate programs. We suggest including sufficient amount of mandatory research ethics training in Master and PhD programs in I.R. Iran. Further research about quality of research ethics training and implementation of curricula in the biomedical institutions is warranted. INTRODUCTION Ethical considerations are fundamental basis for conduct of biomedical research, especially those involving human subjects. Declaration of Helsinki (DOH) which has been revised several times is designed to harmonize ethical standards in the conduct of clinical research and protect human subjects who involve in the biomedical research. 1 The most recent update of the DOH was released in 2013 and included 37 statements about ethics issue in conduct- ing biomedical research involving human subject. The fourth statement of the DOH has emphasized, ‘It is the duty of the physician to promote and safeguard the health, well-being and rights of patients, including those who are involved in medical research. The physician’s knowledge and conscience are dedicated to the fulfillment of this duty’. In spite of the importance of ethical considerations in the research governance and protection of research subjects involved in the clinical research, research ethics is usually placed in the periphery as an administrative issue in the last phase of research design. 2,3 Researchers may face the rules and regulations about research ethics when they apply for researcher grants or conduct clinical studies. Address for correspondence: Kazem Zendehdel, MD, PhD, Cancer Research Center, Cancer Institute of Iran, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, P.O Box: 19395-566, Tehran 1419733141, I.R. Iran. Email: kzendeh@tums.ac.ir. Conflict of interest statement: No conflicts declared. 1 Association WM. WMA Declaration of Helsinki 10th Revision- Ethical Principles for Medical Research Involving Human Subjects2013 2015-12-04. 2 Stockley D, Balkwill L. Raising Awareness of Research Ethics in SoTL: The Role of Educational Developers. The Canadian Journal for the Schol- arship of Teaching and Learning. 2013;4(1, Article 7). 3 Vallance RJ. Research ethics: reforming postgraduate formation. Issues in Educational Research. 2005;15(2):193-205. © 2016 John Wiley & Sons Ltd Developing World Bioethics ISSN 1471-8731 (print); 1471-8847 (online) doi:10.1111/dewb.12122