The Tuskegee Syphilis Study

The Tuskegee syphilis project was a study based on prejudices and unethical practices. The study began in1932 in Macon County, Alabama where a large number of black sharecroppers resided. The study included 600 African American men of which 399 had syphilis. The premise of the project was to study the effects of syphilis on the African American male. The men were told only that they were participating in a study and being treated for “bad blood.” At no time were the subjects communicated they had or did not have syphilis. At the beginning of the study, no treatment was available for syphilis, which is a sexually transmitted disease. There had been several studies on syphilis, but none on the effects of African Americans explicitly. Syphilis

They are the right to self-determination, right to privacy and dignity, right to anonymity and confidentiality, right to fair treatment, and right to protection from discomfort and harm. The Tuskegee Experiment violated every single one of these. The participants were not able to make knowledgeable decisions. Their autonomy was taken away from them violating their right to self-determination. Their right to privacy and dignity was debased by not having control of their medical care and knowing the real purpose of the experiment. The participants are forever known as the Tuskegee Experiment subjects. Their rights and their family rights to anonymity and confidentiality do not exist because of the façades of the experiment. The participants were lied to about the purpose of the study, a description of medical treatment, and the procedures of the study. They did not receive fair treatment. Lastly, is the right to protection from discomfort and harm. The treatment of syphilis was willfully withheld from the participants. The researchers stood by for decades and witnessed their suffering. Their family’s suffering. They buried countless subjects that they had an opportunity to know over the years (Rebar & Gersch,

The absence of informed consent disallowed the partakers to make informed decisions about participation in the research study. The participants continued to be misled from the beginning to the conclusion of the study. Thankfully, specific laws have been enacted to avoid missteps like the ones that occurred in the Tuskeegee Experiment. The National Research Act Public Law 93-348 was signed to address ethical practices in research. From this, a committee was borne that identified the ethical principles that should be included in studies that involve human subjects. The ethical principles brought about are distinguishing between research and routine medical care, establishing the risk to benefit ratio, determining the guidelines for choosing participants, and requiring informed consent. IRBs are boards that were created to oversee proposed research studies. Every detailed study must be submitted to this diverse group of individuals for approval. The findings are then posted in the Belmont Report. The Belmont Report identifies basic ethical principles and guidelines that should be applied (Rebar & Gersch,