European experiences of ethics committees

The term 'ethics committees' is used for very different things in different parts of the world. In Europe, ethics committees are generally concerned o nly with research and (apart from Belgium where the same committees deal wi th both aspects) do not have anything to do with decision making in clinica l situations. This article traces the history of ethics committees in the UK and some of the problems encountered by them. It goes on to detail the situation in a n umber of other European countries. Some topics of research touched on and p ublished in articles in Nursing Ethics are then highlighted, thus making it clear that it is written from my perspective as the Editor of Nursing Ethi cs and with the help of some of the members of the Editorial Board. Finally , a number of questions are asked and answers attempted concerning the inte rests served by ethics committees.