Ethics committees in Georgia

The History of Ethics Committees in Georgia counts about five years. At the beginning only a narrow circle of citizens (such as the scientists interested in publishing results of their research in scientific journals abroad, for which an approval of the research protocol by the ethics committee is an obligatory prerequisite) was familiar with the idea of ethics committees. Later on, the establishment of research ethics committees became necessary for some healthcare institutions due to their participation in the international multi-centre drug trials. Nowadays, ethics committees in Georgia have a solid legal basis. However, the work on the improvement of the legislation is still going on, It is focused mainly on the Law on biomedical research involving human beings, which is at present under the consideration of the Georgian Government. In 2000, the National Council of Bioethics was established, the work of which is regulated by the statute enacted by the Minister of Labour, Health and Social Affairs. There are a few research ethics committees in Georgia, They operate on the basis of the Law on Healthcare, and the Law on Drug and Pharmaceutical Activity. In 2000, the regulation for the medical (institutional) ethics committees was adopted. These committees are not yet established in Georgia.