Victims of medical experimentation or medical practice

In her article “Women as Victims of Medical Experimentation,” Diana Axelsen points out injustice against Black slave women in Sims' medical practice. She points out that these incidents are “an example of the ways in which social values can deprive whole groups of persons of the right to participate in decisions concerning heir own health” (12). Medical injustice against groups with less power is prevalent in history. The Nazi's well-known medical experiments on Jews are one example. Another perhaps less known example of this injustice is the Japanese's experimentation on their colonial subjects (mainly Koreans and Chineses), men and women alike, during World War II. The brutality of the Japanese army unit 731 is too inhumane to describe. The term that the Japanese army used to refer to their "subject" was Maruta, meaning 'log' in Japanese. It is clear that these people weren't even seen as human being, but rather as instruments for their advancement in medical science and war.

The examples of Sims' medical practice, Nazi's and Japanese Army's medical experimentation shows that when the personal or national desire for fame or victory drives health care or medical science, it is very easy to fall into a pitfall of forgetting to recognize human beings as human. As Axelsen points out, "there is still a need to be on guard against invasive surgery" (12). It is true that there is more emphasis put on human dignity and rights. However, I see that medical injustice against a group whose voice cannot be heard is still being done everyday. Abortion. Perhaps this practice is not driven by the desire for personal fame. However, maybe it is possible that this practice is being done for the benefit of the group whose voice can be heard. If one does not sees an unborn as a human being, then this would not be an issue of violation of human right. In any case, respect for patient, and not using them as my personal success is an issue I should be attentive to, as I go through medical school and eventually become a physician.