These horrific experiments included tests on altitude change, hypothermia, salt water consumption, the prevention and treatment of diseases, and sterilization. Not to mention other outrageous experiments- such as the dog chase aforementioned- that leaped over ethical boundaries, and gave us a look into the twisted minds of Nazi doctors. Now, decades later, an intense debate has arisen over whether or not the data gathered in these experiments should be used today. Although some may argue otherwise, the modern usage of data gathered from Nazi medical experiments should be outlawed due to the horrific ways it was gathered. For one, the experiments were blatantly unethical, therefore, using the data is also unethical. Additionally, the usage of the data would be immensely disrespectful to the victims of the Holocaust who continue to suffer from the painful memory of those events. Finally, the modern usage of this data should not be allowed because it would justify the unethical experiments, allowing doctors to continue to perform similar deplorable …show more content…
Consequently, the usage of the Nazi data would only make the situation worse. According to Lynn Gillam, Associate Professor in Health Ethics at the Centre for Health and Society at the University of Melbourne, using the data would “send the message that the experiments weren’t so bad after all, and even encourage morally blinkered doctors to do their own unethical experiments” (Gillam). Further corruption in the medical field is the last thing we want to happen. Stephen G Post argues that the usage of Nazi data must be condemned to discourage similar experiments and send a message that, “the ends do not justify the means and that unethically obtained data must benefit absolutely no one, including the ambitious researcher” (Post). It is time that the medical profession solved its problem of malpractice, and an important step in doing this is outlawing Nazi data. Despite this some still argue that this data could be used to save lives. However, many individuals question the potential benefits, if any, of the the Nazi data. This includes General Telford Taylor, prosecutor of the German doctors at Nuremberg in 1946, who proclaimed, “These experiments revealed nothing which civilised medicine can use” (Post). Decades later, Dr. Arthur Caplan, director of the Center for Biomedical Ethics at the University of Minnesota,