A tale of two studies: research governance issues arising from two ethnographic investigations into the organisation of health and social care

In a number of countries throughout the world attention is being paid to the ways in which health and social care research is undertaken and regulated. In the United Kingdom, new research governance frameworks are intended to promote improvement in research quality. This paper draws on our experiences of seeking research ethics committee approval for two investigations with the same research design, in order to address four governance issues: consistency within and between ethics committees; the assessment of vulnerable individuals regarding their suitability to participate in studies; the relationship between ethics and access; and ethics committee understanding of qualitative research.