Business Research Ethics

RES/351

University of Phoenix

Business Research Ethics

Unethical medical business research has occurred throughout time, and is particularly punctuated by the experiments conducted by at least 23 Nazi physicians on Jews, political prisoners, and the physically and mentally handicapped during World War II. Unethical medical procedures were performed without the knowledge, consent, or protection of the subjects (University of Phoenix, 2011, Week One Reading). Advancement in medicine requires testing on humans and animals; however, medical research is considered unethical if the testing is performed against the will of the subjects. During World War II, Nazi doctors performed up to 30 different experiments on concentration camp prisoners that caused the victims intense pain, mutilation, permanent disability, and at worst, death (Tyson, 2000). Many of the experiments were conducted to improve the performance of the German military personnel, to multiply the Aryan race, and to develop vaccines for diseases. Some of the experiments included studying the effects of high altitude on the brain, monitoring bodily reactions to freezing temperatures, infecting victims with bacteria or gas gangrene in inflicted battlefield-type wounds, and injecting poisons. Others included amputation to attempt bone, muscle, and joint transplantation, sterilization, and artificial insemination (Tyson, 2000). The sum of concentration camp victims of the experiments by the Nazi scientists is unknown. The doctors performed the horrific experiments on male and female victims from toddler age to the elderly who were already weakened by the poor care and treatment afforded them in the camps. In 2004, 1,778 surviving victims of the experiments received $5,400 each from the German government for their suffering (Heilman, 2004). The injured