APA Combined SIG: Ethics and Qualitative Research

Saturday, April 26, 2025

10:00am – 11:30am HST

Location: Convention Center: 321

CE: CME: 1.5
Ethics CME: 1.5

SIG Chair(s)

Chad Vercio, MD

Division Chief of General Pediatrics, MedPeds and Peds Hospitalists
Pediatrics
Loma Linda University Children's Hospital
Loma Linda, California, United States
AL

Ashwini Lakshmanan, MD, MS, MPH (she/her/hers)

Associate Professor, Health Systems Science
Pediatrics
Kaiser Permanente Bernard J. Tyson School of Medicine
Pasadena, California, United States
Catherine Shubkin, MD, FAAP, HEC-C (she/her/hers)

Associate Professor of Pediatrics
Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth
Lebanon, New Hampshire, United States
Liza-Marie Johnson, MD, MPH, MSB, HEC-C (she/her/hers)

Associate Member (Professor)
St. Jude Children's Research Hospital
Memphis, Tennessee, United States
Jean Petershack, MD (she/her/hers)

Professor/Clinical
UT Health San Antonio
San Antonio, Texas, United States
BM

Bryanna Moore, PhD (she/they)

Assistant Professor
University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry, United States

Disclosure(s):

Chad Vercio, MD: I do not have any relevant financial / non-financial relationships with any proprietary interests.

Ashwini Lakshmanan, MD, MS, MPH: I do not have any relevant financial / non-financial relationships with any proprietary interests.

Catherine D. Shubkin, MD, FAAP, HEC-C: I do not have any relevant financial / non-financial relationships with any proprietary interests.

Liza-Marie Johnson, MD, MPH, MSB, HEC-C: No relevant disclosure to display

Jean A. Petershack, MD: I do not have any relevant financial / non-financial relationships with any proprietary interests.

While the ethical issues that arise in research are covered in general terms in IRB trainings, many clinician-investigators have limited opportunities to engage with the ethical dimensions of their work beyond that. This combined session with the Ethics and Qualitative Research Special Interest Groups will explore the ethical issues encountered in qualitative research. The Ethics SIG co-chairs will introduce the topic and provide a brief overview of ‘vulnerabilities’ in research, feminist ethical theories, and the principles of community-based participatory research—all of which are salient to qualitative research. Co-chairs from both SIGs will then present two case studies and lead a discussion about the different ethical issues that can occur across the research timeline and strategies to address them. Audience members will be invited to participate throughout. We hope that you will join and learn along with us.

Learning Objectives:

Define at risk populations in research.
Describe potential ethical issues that can arise within qualitative research.
Identify 1-2 strategies designed to promote ethical design in a qualitative research project of their choosing.

Presentations:

10:00am – 10:15am HST

Background on Qualitative Research Methodology and Overlap with Ethical Issues
SIG Speaker: Chad Vercio, MD – Loma Linda University Children's Hospital
10:15am – 10:30am HST

Background on Qualitative Research Methodology and Overlap with Ethical Issues
SIG Speaker: Ashwini Lakshmanan, MD, MS, MPH (she/her/hers) – Kaiser Permanente Bernard J. Tyson School of Medicine
10:30am – 10:45am HST

Definition of at Risk Populations and "Vulnerabilities" in Research
10:45am – 11:00am HST

Relational Ethics and Care Ethics Frameworks
SIG Speaker: Catherine D. Shubkin, MD, FAAP, HEC-C (she/her/hers) – Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth
11:00am – 11:15am HST

Application of Ethics Within Qualitative Research
SIG Speaker: Liza-Marie Johnson, MD, MPH, MSB, HEC-C (she/her/hers) – St. Jude Children's Research Hospital
11:15am – 11:30am HST

Group Work Introduction
SIG Speaker: Jean A. Petershack, MD (she/her/hers) – UT Health San Antonio