ipl-logo

Ethical Principles In The Tuskegee Study

482 Words2 Pages

The ethical principles that were transgressed in the Tuskegee study were beneficence, nonmaleficence, autonomy, and justice. I believe these ethical principles were transgressed because “medical treatment was deliberately withheld to study the course of the untreated disease” (Polit & Beck, 2022, p. 61). In no circumstances should a participant's basic ethical principles be violated/taken away from them just for a study to get results. Beneficence is defined as “the act of doing good” (Butts & Rich, 2023, p. 426) and I believe in this study it was transgressed because the complete study was based on the act of doing wrong. From the very beginning, the African American men were lied to about what the study was. The men were told “that they were to be treated for ‘bad …show more content…

The article “About the USPHS Syphilis Study” talked about in 1947 when penicillin was found to help treat syphilis, it was withheld from the participants (About, 2023). This is violating those men's right to nonmaleficence and therefore causing further harm. This also was violating the African American men's right to autonomy. Autonomy is defined as “the ability to make independent decisions for oneself and to have those decisions respected by others” (Butts & Rich, 2023, p. 425). In the study, the men were not able to make independent decisions, like receiving proper treatment or informed consent. The article “The U.S. Public Health Service Syphilis Study at Tuskegee” stated “as part of the study, researchers did not collect informed consent from participants and they did not offer treatment, even after it was widely available” (The U.S., 2022). The final ethical principle I think that was transgressed in this study was justice. Justice is defined as “a moral concept of rightness based on fairness and equality” (Butts & Rich, 2023, p.

Show More
Related

A Comparison Of Skid Row Cancer Study And The Henrietta Lacks

588 Words | 3 Pages

There have been many conflicts in the past in the medical field about violating patients’ privacy rights. In the book, The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks, there is an issue where her cells are taken to check what she went to the hospital for, yet, her cells weren’t only checked for that. Her cells were being transported, sold, and even injected into other people for experiments without any form of consent. The Skid Row Cancer Study and the Henrietta Lacks study are similar in the way that they both have some ethical issues having to do with consent. Around the 1950’s, Dr. Perry Hudson (a medical researcher from Columbia University) wanted to perform some prostate biopsies to see who had prostate cancer in Manhattan on 1,200.

Read More

The Immortal Life Of Henrietta Lacks By Rebecca Skloot

1631 Words | 7 Pages

This experiment, conducted by the U.S. Public Health Service, was intent to study the natural progression of syphilis in African American male population. The study participants voluntarily participated in the study but the researchers did not properly inform the participants on the availability of treatment or the risks of the disease if untreated. To make the matter worse, the participants were deliberately led to believe that they were receiving treatment from the Public Health Service for free, while the actual treatment was being withheld to achieve the purpose of the research. In today’s point of view, it is surprising that even the federal agency did not respect the dignity of human rights for the sake of research. In Henrietta’s era, even the federal agency did not follow the proper informed consent procedure, and a prestigious institution like John’s Hopkins did not have any regulations or office such as Institutional Review Boards (IRBs) to govern their research protocols to protect human subjects and their rights.

Read More

Outlook At Chapter 14 In Bad Blood Tuskegee

1003 Words | 5 Pages

This chapter reviews the long-term effect the experiment had on the African American population. Specifically, it discusses the effects the experiment has on the relationships between black and the American population and health care professionals. After the Tuskegee Syphilis Experiment, the African American population became very critical of health care professionals, therefore, they ignored the warnings given about the prevention and epidemic of AIDS. If it was not for the experiment that rightfully made black individuals not trust health care professional the rate of AIDS would have been lower, and less people would have been infected. Overall, the chapter goes to show that it is important for health care professional to be honest and transparent with patients and the population, so that a strong relationship can be formed so that there can be advances in health

Read More

Chapter Analysis: The Beauty In Breaking By Michele Harper

1283 Words | 6 Pages

This article gives multiple examples of unethical experiments performed on Black people one being the Tuskegee Syphilis Study. For 40 years, the Black men in the study were led to believe that they were being treated for “bad blood,” but in reality, they were not given proper treatment for syphilis. The result of withholding treatment from these men led to treatable deaths and their wives and children getting infected. Another unethical experiment mentioned in Medical Experiments on African-Americans in America was the work done by James Marion Sims, who is considered The Father of American gynecology. He performed multiple procedures on black slave women without anesthesia which was available at this time.

Read More

Short Essay On Tuskegee Airmen

814 Words | 4 Pages

Tuskegee Airmen were just some of the many African Americans that fought in WW2.The Tuskegee airmen was an all african american squadron created to fight the germans in WW2, They flew many combat missions during the war, and that earned them a reputation among other pilots including medals from the U.S Air Force. Africans have always played a big role in almost every major U.S wars. They fought in the revolutionary war for our independence through to today. Also a surprising fact you wouldn’t think that African Americans would have a big part in the Civil War but they did; in fact several all black regiments were formed during the time. WW2 was the first time the govenment had formed a black fighter squadron.

Read More

Why Is Henrietta Lacks Unethical

1416 Words | 6 Pages

In Tuskegee, Alabama a group of men were chosen for an experiment involving the observation of how syphilis occurs in black men and its long term non-treated consequences. At the time of the experiment, the only treatment that was available was a heavy metal therapy; however, the scientists believed it was doing more harm than good. Therefore, they did not inform the men about the treatment and distracted them with basic incentives like hot meals and transportation. When penicillin, a cure for syphilis, was discovered the doctors made the decision to shield the cure away from the men. This is proof that scientists are

Read More

Miss Evers Boys Ethics Paper

876 Words | 4 Pages

Miss Evers' Boys Ethics Paper. The Tuskegee Syphilis research, which started in the 1930s, was an unethical prospective research that focused on the disparities between white and black males. In order to test the impact of untreated syphilis, black men and their families were mistreated in this study. One of the worst injustices in American history, the Tuskegee Syphilis Study involved volunteers who knew very little about the illness or the study.

Read More

Henrietta Lacks Informed Consent

948 Words | 4 Pages

In the context of medical research, informed consent provides individuals with the opportunity to accept or decline involvement in research, and thereby adheres to their right to choose. Obtaining consent from donors is not limited to simply seeking permission, but involves explaining the nature and consequences of research in an honest and understandable manner. When this aspect of informed consent is ignored, unethical research ensues. For example, during the infamous Tuskegee Syphilis Experiments, US Public Health researchers studied the progression of syphilis in African American men, under the false pretense of curing their “bad blood”. Though a treatment of penicillin was available at the time, researchers idly observed as subjects died painful, preventable deaths.

Read More

Miss Evers Boys Essay

1779 Words | 8 Pages

The film “Miss Evers’ Boys” is a historical portrayal of the Tuskegee Syphilis Study, an unethical medical experiment on African American men in the 1930s. Offering a realistic depiction of the Tuskegee Syphilis Study, “Miss Evers’ Boys” sheds light on the significant event which has been under-reported and under-studied. The opportunity to explore the story of “Miss Evers’ Boys” compelled me to dive deeper into the topic, given the importance of raising awareness about the unethical study that the film was based on. The movie provides a historical account of the Tuskegee Syphilis Study, exposing the systemic racism and the unethical medical practices of the time. "

Read More

What Ethical Principles Were Violated In The Tuskegee

1492 Words | 6 Pages

They were not told about their diagnosis or given appropriate treatment, even after penicillin became widely available as an effective cure for syphilis. In our textbook, Health Care Ethics: Critical Issues for the 21st Century,

Read More

Tuskegee Airmen Essay

856 Words | 4 Pages

In this essay, we will go over the timeline of WWII and the things that occurred while and when WWII was happening. The first thing I will be talking about is the Tuskegee Airmen. The Tuskegee Airmen were the first African American group that fought in WWII, they were bombers and pilots in the war. The reason why the Tuskegee group was so important to WWII was that they were the first african american group to fight in the air for America, the Tuskegee group broke that barrier of African Americans not being able to fly and bomb in war. Not only were the Tuskegee group men but also women were a part of this group.

Read More

Essay On Tuskegee Study

546 Words | 3 Pages

The Tuskegee study of Untreated Syphilis began in 1932, mainly designed to determine the history of untreated latent syphilis on 600 African American men in Tuskegee, Alabama. 201 out of 600 men were non-syphilitic just unknowingly involved in the study as a control group This study is known to be “the most infamous biomedical research study in the U.S history”. Most of these men had never visited a doctor and they had no idea what illness they had. All of the men agreed to be a participant thinking they were being treated for “bad blood” and plus they were given free medical care and meals.

Read More

Tuskegee Syphilis Experiment Essay

520 Words | 3 Pages

It has now been a quarter of a century, and yet the images and heartache that still evolve when the words "Tuskegee Syphilis Study" are brought up, still haunts people around the world and touches upon many professionals such as social workers, medical examiners, and so forth. Sometimes people hear about this disgusting human experiment in a highly visible way directed to the entire country as an example of what we as a country and people, in general, should not do. This occurred when the study first made national news in 1972, when President Clinton offered a formal apology, or when Hollywood actors star in a fictionalized television movie of the story. On the other hand the audience may become fainter: kept alive only by memories and stories told in the African American community, in queries that circulate over the world wide web and radio talk shows, or even in courses such as this one being taught by social workers, historians, sociologists, or bioethicists. This is neither the first nor the last unethical human experiment done under the human study for the medical purposes umbrella, basically stating it is ok to sacrifice a few people in the name of medical research.

Read More

Unethical Behavior In Miss Evers Boys

1342 Words | 6 Pages

The study would ultimately prove that everyone, no matter the color of their skin, is equal when it comes to the disease of syphilis. The intention behind manipulating the men was not for the greater good of society, but instead was for the greater good of Dr. Brodus and Miss Evers. Although the actions of Dr. Brodus and Miss Evers prove to be unethical, I also find the actions to be unprofessional. Miss Evers should have informed the men of the severity of the disease, as well as how the disease is passed from one individual to another. They failed to inform their patients of many of the risks that came along with the disease.

Read More

Summary Of Miss Evers Boys

1109 Words | 5 Pages

In fact they were being harmed. An example from the movie is when the participants in the experiment were told entering the program by Nurse Evers that they were all being treated for bad blood when in fact they were being solely experimented on for the benefit of the government. The men were receiving free treatment that was not even designed to better their health. The benefits for the participants did not outweigh the risks. Matter of fact one may argue that there were many risks and little to no benefits.

Read More

More about Ethical Principles In The Tuskegee Study

Related Topics

Open Document