Protecting Human Subjects in Research: Not To IRB(e) Taken Lightly

On this week's episode of the podcast, we discuss protections in place for human research subjects. To start the conversation, we discuss some infamous examples of past injustices conducted in the name of "research" and the regulations they prompted as a result. We highlight four cases: the Holocaust experiments, the Tuskegee Syphilis Study, the work of James Marion Sims, and the case of Henrietta Lacks.

We spend some time detailing historical documents and regulations that were developed to protect human subjects that came out of these horrific historical blunders and atrocities. Next, we discuss in detail what "informed consent" means, the rigorous regulatory process for any research involving humans, and the modern-day Institutional Review Board (IRB). We recognize that there continues to exist distrust of science and the medical establishment, particularly among populations of color, and our hope is that this episode sets the stage for future conversations that are needed to address this complex issue.

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