The UK government will take steps to make sure patients are better informed of opportunities to participate in clinical trials, according to the country's health minister. Doctors in the UK "already have a duty to advise patients, in each patient's best interest, about all aspects of their treatment, including research," a UK Department of Health spokesperson told __The Scientist__ in an Email. But UK Secretary of State for Health linkurl:Alan Johnson,;http://www.number-10.gov.uk/output/Page6309.asp said that the duty will be clearly laid out in a soon-to-be-released constitution for the country's health service. In a speech he gave yesterday (Jun 24), commemorating the 60th anniversary of the United Kingdom's National Health Service (NHS), Johnson outlined plans to make sure patients are told of studies relevant to them and to and make sure information is shared between pharmaceutical companies, academic institutions and other research centers. "I want every patient in the NHS to have the...
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