From 1932 to 1972 a research study, now known as the Tuskegee Syphilis Study, caused harm to black men. Men in this study were not told they had syphilis. When penicillin was discovered as a cure, they were not given the treatment. Unfortunately, Tuskegee is not the only example of abuse in research.
Remembering the ways that past research has harmed people can help to prevent such harms from occurring again. But we should not let the errors of the past get in the way of advances for the future.
Clinical trials will help find safe and effective ways to prevent and treat COVID-19. It’s important for people to know that things have changed for the better since Tuskegee.
What is a research abuse?
Research abuse means that people who take part in research are intentionally harmed, put at risk, or treated unfairly. This goes against the three golden rules of research. These golden rules are to respect people, do no harm, and to be fair.
Before the 1970’s, there was not a way to make sure all researchers followed these rules. Many researchers acted ethically. However, some ignored the safety and well-being of the people who took part in research. These studies were usually approved by the institutions where they took place. In some cases, the research was paid for or run by the U.S. government.
What are some examples of past research abuses?
Contrary to popular beliefs, the men in the Tuskegee study already had syphilis before they were enrolled in the project. They were not injected with syphilis by the researchers. But there have been other cases where researchers exposed people to harmful or infectious substances on purpose. In some cases, this was done to children who were not able to give consent.
There have been past instances of researchers recklessly exposing people to radiation. In many cases, people were not aware and did not give consent.
Consent was not always freely given. Research was sometimes done with people in prison or in the military. But researchers didn’t always make sure people felt free to refuse to take part.
Research abuses were not limited to the United States. Experiments on prisoners in Nazi concentration camps injured or killed many people. Prisoners of war were subjected to medical torture in Japan.
Sadly, there are many more examples of past research abuse. It is important for all researchers to openly acknowledge the past so that similar actions never happen again. It’s also important for people who may take part in research to know that there are many safeguards to protect them. Read on to know more about how research has changed since Tuskegee.
Visit
WePartner4Research to learn more about how clinical trials work. There you will find out why research volunteers are so important for improving health, including ending the coronavirus pandemic.
The official name of the virus that started a worldwide outbreak in late 2019 is “Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2.” The abbreviation is SARS-CoV-2. When the virus infects someone, the diagnosis is called “Coronavirus Disease 2019.” The abbreviation is COVID-19. In COVID-19, ‘CO’ stands for ‘corona,’ ‘VI’ for ‘virus,’ and ‘D’ for disease.