In May and June 2021 the TEDDY’s Chair, Annagrazia Altavilla, presented the results of the TEDDY Council of Europe Survey on participation of children in the decision-making process on matters regarding their health in the plenary sessions of the Committee on Bioethics (DH-BIO) and the Steering Committee for the rights of the Child (CDENF) of the Council of Europe.
In January 2021 the COE – Committee on Bioethics (DH-BIO), with the support of TEDDY, released a survey to identify national provisions, guidelines and practices aimed at strengthening children’s participation in the decision-making process in health care, research and more in general in the biomedical field.
The Survey received 185 answers from 36 Countries. The main results showed that a general lack of awareness of issues related to participation of children in decision making regarding their health and that a great heterogeneity of legal frameworks implementing the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (art.12) still exist. The need to work more on this topic with a pluridisciplinary approach and to promote a stronger engagement and collaboration among all the stakeholders has been underlined.
The results of this survey will help in outlining best standards and practices and determining roadmap for developing a guide for healthcare professionals, patients/parents’ association expected in 2022.