Part 1:

Respond to the following in a minimum of 175 words:

· How did the Lacks family, the media, and the general population view the medical community during the 1950s? What is the Nuremberg Code? How was it used, and was it easily enforced? Why or why not?

· How have ethics and laws around medical research with human subjects changed? How is the medical community viewed today, and what do you think would have happened in Henrietta Lacks’s case if she lived today? Support your response by citing 2 to 3 reputable sources.

Part 2: a (Respond to post)

The Lacks family who was a poor African American family in the 1950s. Henritta Lacks went for treatment of cervical cancer and the medical community who treated her did an unethical act by before treated her cervical cancer her doctor cut a portion of her cervical area. In result Lacks died shortly after her procedure. Her cells later became HeVa which became a medical breakthrough that is used in today’s society. The Lacks family had a huge misunderstanding for science and the medical community. Providers refused to bridge the gap of miscommunication. The Nuremberg code is a list of ethics that was created at the end at the end of World War two, the ethical principles were based on human experimenting. The Nuremberg code was not enforced in the Lacks case because Ms Lacks never gave any consent to be experimented on.

Laws and ethics have changed tremendously in all procedures performed either in the clinic or operating room a consent must be sign with the name of the procedure the provider is doing and the risks involved with the procedure. If there is a patient who wants to be involved in any research the patient must give the consent for the research prior to the procedure. I believe the medical community is more trusted today because we have laws that protect the patient. I believe today Henritta would have a huge lawsuit if this had happened today.

Resources:

https://libguides.umw.edu/c.php?g=424379&p=28

Part 2: b (respond to post )

During the 1950’s there was very little faith in the healthcare system from the media, the general public and the Lacks family. During the 1950’s polio cases were increasing significantly and children were being infected at astronomical rates with misinformation being also rapidly spreading. The Lacks family were unfortunately unaware of the history their mothers cells were making in the fight to cure many diseases including polio, but due to them being African American they were accustomed to receiving less than adequate healthcare. During the times of Henrietta’s battle with cervical cancer it was accustomed for African Americans records, cells and bodies be used to testing. The Nuremberg Code was 10 codes to make involuntary testing on human subjects illegal, also any testing that was going to have potentially fatal or injuring results was to not be attempted according to the code. It seems the Nuremberg Code was put in placed and utilized, but in typical fashion for that time period it did not apply to African Americans. HeLa cells were taken, researched, and used for monetary purposes without Henrietta’s consent, which goes against The Nuremberg Code.

Ethics and laws around medical research within healthcare have changed for the better, however there are loop holes where some patients fall through. Patient consent is a major topic and having consent on file whether electronic or paper is mandatory in all properly regulated healthcare settings. Within the concept of patient consent there are certain regulations that have to be in place in order to make the consent accurate. A patient must be able to understand the information, retain the information, process their decision and communicate their decision. I do think that the changes that have been made in healthcare will aid in preventing the Henrietta Lack situation from happening again, but there are still many situations where procedures have been improperly explained or information has been withheld. Overall, I believe consent has progressed greatly.