fb tracking

iCOMPARE and FIRST Trials Comparing Standard and Long Work Schedules for Medical Residents

On November 19, 2015, Public Citizen and the American Medical Student Association (AMSA) called on federal regulators at the Office for Human Research Protections to investigate two highly unethical clinical trials, known as the iCOMPARE and FIRST trials, that have allowed first-year medical residents to work shifts of 28 consecutive hours or more — nearly twice the current maximum number of hours allowed by the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) for such residents. Public Citizen and AMSA also urged OHRP to immediately suspend the ongoing iCOMPARE trial, which is funded by the National Institutes of Health.

In a separate letter to the ACGME, Public Citizen and AMSA urged the accrediting organization to rescind waivers of its work-hour limits that it granted to hospitals and residency training programs participating in the two experimental trials. Neither trial could have proceeded without the ACGME’s waivers.

Read a brief summary of the major issues with the iCOMPARE and FIRST trials.

More Information on the iCOMPARE and FIRST Trials