Reference no: EM133697409
The Willowbrook Hepatitis Experiments: Researchers deliberately exposed children at the Willowbrook State School in New York to hepatitis in the 1950s to study the disease's progression and test potential vaccines. This study raised ethical concerns about the exploitation of vulnerable populations and informed consent.
1. What were the ethical concerns raised by the Willowbrook hepatitis experiments, and how did they impact the participants?
2. Discuss the concept of informed consent and its absence in the Willowbrook experiments.
3. How did the experiments contribute to our understanding of infectious diseases, but at the expense of vulnerable populations?
4. Reflect on the ethical challenges of balancing the benefits of research with the protection of human subjects.
5. What measures can be taken to ensure that research involving vulnerable populations is conducted ethically?
6. Discuss the role of institutional review boards and research oversight mechanisms in safeguarding research participants' rights.
7. How have the Willowbrook hepatitis experiments influenced regulations and ethical guidelines for human subjects research?