Introduction
Between the 1950s and 1970s, the inmates of Holmesburg Prison were used as human subjects for scientific experiments. Although they were approved by the government, not all legal actions may be regarded as ethical. It goes without saying that these studies were unacceptable from the position of ethics.
Main body
In 1947, the Nuremberg Code was adopted as the first international code that aimed to regulate ethics for scientific researches when human subjects were involved. According to it, “the voluntary consent of the human subject is absolutely essential” (“The Nuremberg Code.” 1947, para. 2). Prisoners who were allowed to make them part of inappropriate experiments were not free to choose whether to participate in medical studies or not. Moreover, they were predominantly uneducated to understand the full processes of experiments and they were not offered any reliable information. That is why the experiments of Dr. Kligman may be defined as unethical as human subjects did not give their consent.
In order to make a fair-minded and impartial decision concerning the situation from the position of ethics, a competent nurse should know whether the principle of maleficence was applied and human subjects had autonomy in their decision-making. The majority of Kligman’s experiments were dangerous as medical products, chemical substances, and the influence of radiation was tested. From the position of nursing, these studies are inappropriate as well as the patient’s welfare is the priority for this discipline.
In general, an individual and his or her family members may serve as human subjects for certain medical experiments if their participation may save the lives of other people, for instance, in the context of a pandemic. Both parties should “expect the experiment to generate useful knowledge that could not be otherwise obtained” (Bromley, et al., 2015, p. 900). At the same time, they should participate voluntarily and be aware of all risks connected with research (Palaskar, 2018). In this case, people give their personal consent and such studies may be regarded as ethical.
Conclusion
It goes without saying, that prisoners may currently participate in medical experiments. On the one hand, their level of health may let them participate in researches, and their imprisonment helps scientists to monitor the inmates’ conditions in the same territory more effectively. However, similar to other people, prisoners should primarily agree to be human subjects and have a right to refuse.
References
Bromley, E., Mikesell, L., Jones, F., Khodyakov, D. (2015). From subject to participant: Ethics and the evolving role of community in health research. American Journal of Public Health, 105(5), 900-908.
Palaskar, J. (2018). Research ethics. Journal of Dental & Allied Sciences, 7(1), 1-2. Web.
The Nuremberg Code. (1947). Web.