Will forensic use of medical biobanks decrease public trust in healthcare services? Some empirical observations

Authors: Bexelius, Christin¹; Hoeyer, Klaus²; Lynöe, Niels³

Source: Scandinavian Journal of Public Health, Volume 35, Number 4, 2007 , pp. 442-444(3)

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Abstract:

Aim: The authors tested the prevalent hypothesis that forensic use of medical biobanks has a negative impact on public trust in healthcare services. Method: A questionnaire was sent to 1,184 inhabitant in the age group 20-80 years in Stockholm County, Sweden, in November 2005. Results: With a response rate of 68.4%, the results showed that a majority (88.1%) of the respondents thought that it would be acceptable for the police to gain access to genetic samples stored in relation to healthcare; 5.6% said no and 6.3% were uncertain. In the case of police access to medical biobanks, a minority (6.3%) indicated that this would have a negative impact on their trust, a larger proportion (37.8%) that it would influence their trust in the healthcare services positively, and 56% stated that it would not affect their trust at all. Conclusion: The hypothesis tested appears to be unfounded. This should cause us to reconsider prevalent assumptions and current policies on the interface of medical and forensic genetics.

Keywords: Forensics; biobanks; public trust; healthcare services

Document Type: Research article

DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/14034940701280768

Affiliations: 1: Department of Medical Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden 2: Institute of Public Health, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark 3: Department of Learning, Informatics, Management and Ethics, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden

Publication date: 2007-01-01

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