Lynley M. Anderson

Boundaries between research and clinical practice blur in health research conducted by clinician-researchers. We describe a typology, of clinician-researcher dual-role tensions, with two overarching catalysts: acting as a clinical resource for patient-participants and forming researcher–participant relationships mirroring clinician–patient relationships. Using the typology as an analytic template we explored blurred boundaries in five illustrative, non-clinician, critical studies. Like clinician-researchers, critical researchers act in ways that promote rapport and relationships with their participants, which can blur boundaries. While clinician-researchers see tension between clinician and researcher roles, we ask what roles critical researchers attempt to distinguish: ethically minded citizen and researcher, socially conscious community member and researcher, or friend and researcher? Anticipating catalysts of dual-role tension may assist critical researchers in planning and conducting robust research.

In New Zealand, there are adolescents who are at risk of pregnancy and who do not want to become pregnant, but are not using contraception. Cost and other barriers limit access to contraception. To address the gap between contraceptive need and contraceptive access, this paper puts forward the concept of proactive contraception provision, where adolescents are offered contraceptives directly. To strengthen the case for proactive contraception provision, this paper addresses a series of potential objections. One is that such a programme would cause harm; another that such a programme would not have sufficient benefit. In rebutting these objections, the conclusion is reached that proactive contraception provision is a model worth pursuing as a means of meeting the needs of the New Zealand adolescent population and may be of interest more widely.