Human Experimentation Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Human Experimentation - Essay Example It includes the historical background, after-effects, and the current status of human medical experimentation. The research entails the pros and cons of this practice along with salient ideas on overcoming or eradicating this kind of torture. Human Medical Experimentation A torturous conduct that thoroughly defied human rights and questioned healthcare norms It is generally stated that human beings of the world have certain rights which cannot be taken away from them, irrespective of situation and circumstances. The nature of these rights may be political or civil liberty; however, the most important right which a human being is entitled to is the right to physical safety and, most significantly, to "life". Human rights basically project the need for human tolerance, acceptance, fairness and mutual respect. The human rights notion exudes morality and justice. Although importance of human rights is emphasized by many organizations and governments around the world, violation of human r ights is a common experience around the world. The participation of human beings in medical experimentation is one such subject, which remains controversial due to human rights abuses. Many developed countries of the world, including the United States, claim to be world leaders in medical research. However, the Western medical development has a hidden dark side which is not acknowledged by many. This unlit side points to the fact that in order to develop medicine and achieve scientific progress, horrific medical experiments were conducted on destitute human beings and their children (Moses, 2007). For the most part, these medical experiments were conducted to gain profit by successfully developing drugs for various diseases and, mostly, these experiments were conducted without the knowledge of the people involved in the experimentation. Many believe that despite today’s so called free and civilized societies prevailing in the West, human experimentation has been taken up on a mass level. According to experts, almost half of the population of the United States is using some kind of drug regularly, and about 20% of children are using antidepressants or amphetamines (Moses, 2007). This paper aims to explore the topic of human medical experimentation with a view to illustrate its history, the dark side which it projects, the benefits that it has provided to human society and current status and opinions of various experts on the subject. Various medical fields such as biology, psychology, anthropology and clinical medicine employ human subject for research purposes. Human medical experimentation exposes living human beings to experiments, which are mostly cruel, painful, deadly and risky. Although Western countries are responsible for astounding medical breakthroughs such as the cure for malaria and other deadly diseases, this success, however, is followed by an immense price paid by the participants of the experiments. Some participants are compensated for their losses in physical and mental health, but most participants have not been compensated at all. Many participants have lost their lives during the process of experimentation, and of course, no compensation can bring back the most precious thing lost: their lives. The history of human medical experimentation in U.S. dates back to 1845, when J. Marion Sims, also known as the father of