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Get research ethics advice from our scientific ombudsman

Image montage of a hand holding a compass and Per Odin. Photo.
Per Odin has served as the scientific ombudsman since 2020, helping researchers navigate the complex forest of ethical regulations.

Do you have a question regarding scientific publishing, authorship, and research collaborations? Then you can turn to Per Odin, the Faculty of Medicine's scientific ombudsman, for advice and support.

"What has quantitatively dominated during my time are various questions regarding authorship - who has the right and who does not have the right to be a co-author, the order of authors, and much more around this - this is obviously an area where there are many questions and potential conflicts," says Per Odin.

Applications to the ethics committee

Another common type of question concerns ownership of research data and who has the right to use the data.

"There have also been questions regarding applications to the ethics committee and the Medical Products Agency, as well as the need to establish agreements for various types of scientific collaborations."

Encouraging discussion

Per Odin explains that the ombudsmen can, if necessary, raise questions to the research ethics council that has now been established at several faculties. The councils support the faculty management in research ethics issues, inform and stimulate discussion on ethical issues, and provide general advice and guidance on such matters.

"General advice on these issues is posted on the faculty's website (see fact box)."
 

Ethical guidelines and reviews

In 2019, the University management decided that all faculties should have scientific ombudsmen. The ombudsmen are appointed by the faculties for a three-year period. The ombudsmen shall actively work to promote good research practice within their respective faculties. The scientific ombudsmen meet regularly to exchange information and experiences. The ombudsman network reports annually to Lund University's Council for Ethics and Academic Freedom and to the Rector's Executive Council.

See the page Ethical guidelines and reviews on Intramed