Describe two historical events that have influenced the development of ethical codes and regulations for nursing and healthcare research.

One historical event that has greatly influenced the development of ethical codes and regulations for nursing and healthcare research is the Nuremberg trials. During these trials, which took place following World War II, Nazi doctors were tried for their use of unethical human experimentation on prisoners. These experiments included torture, sterilization, forced abortions, and other atrocities. The revelations from the Nuremberg Trials served as a reminder to researchers around the world that ethical standards must be upheld in all research involving humans. This ultimately led to the establishment of various ethical guidelines and regulations aimed at protecting participants involved in clinical research studies.

Another event that has influenced the development of ethical codes and regulations for nursing and healthcare research is known as “the Tuskegee syphilis study”. This study began in 1932 when 600 African American men with syphilis were recruited without their informed consent to participate in an experiment aimed at studying how untreated syphilis would progress over time. The men were misled about what was being studied and received no treatment even after penicillin became available as a cure for syphilis several years later. As a result of this scandalous experiment conducted by US public health officials, numerous ethics guidelines have been established related to informed consent, protection from harm during research activities, respect for autonomy during clinical experiments, etc.