Harrison

Caitlin Harrison
Wertz-Orbaugh
UWRT 1102-016
October 29, 2015
Research Review
Introduction
For my inquiry project, I have chosen to research medical professionals during the
Holocaust. These professionals range from nurses to physicians, from psychiatrists to surgeons;
some of who were imprisoned themselves during the Holocaust, others who were of Hitlers
Nazi Regime. Doctors of Jewish decent who had been confined to ghettos and then eventually to
internment camps were taken advantage of by those in control. The Nazis would use their
medical knowledge to benefit their own selves, whether that was to further their scientific
experiments or to sterilize a mass race that was seen as undeserving. Some of these prisoners
were forced against their will to perform such atrocities to those of the same race; others were so
desperate to live that they would do anything to find approval from the Nazis. On the other hand,
medical professionals of the ideal Arian race or members of the Nazi regime were abusing
their own skills and knowledge to perform unethical procedures on these Jewish victims.
Regardless of the side these individuals were on during the war, the fact that each of them had
pursued careers that focused on the healing of humans, and then continued on to take part in one
of the most inhuman treatments of individuals, proves them to be indisputably guilty in this
historical atrocity.
The reason this topic interests me is because of my own passion to one day enter into the
medical. I was born with this passion instilled in me, and my underlying desire is to care for

Harrison

those in need of healing and care. As a future nurse with such desires, I would like to believe that
everyone who enters into this field has similar passions and values as I do. I would like to think
that everyone with such medical authority has the interest of the good of those they are caring for
at heart. However, I now know after studying this topic, that this is not always the case. In this
paper, I will use the sources I found to help me understand the initial values and purpose of
medical professionals, the way in which these values altered during the time of the Holocaust,
and where it is that the blame should be placed for the demoralization of medical professionals at
this time.
Medical ethics researcher, Jeremiah Barondessattemptedtoexplainthegradual
disintegrationofsuchmoraldesiresofmedicalprofessionstothoseoflessthanmoral,
comparablyinhumanedesiresinthearticletitled,CareoftheMedicalEthos,withSome
CommentsonResearch:ReflectionsAftertheHolocaust.Heexplained,Inthe15thcentury
thestillpowerfulexpressiontocuresometimes;torelieveoften;tocomfortalwayswasso
widelyacceptedthatitiscarvedintothebasesonwhichstatuesofmedicalluminariesrest
(Barondess).Thisquotehasbeenbeneficialtomyinquiryprojectbecauseisdescribesthe
antecedentfocusofmedicine,andthatitwascenteredonthevalueofselflessnessandthewell
beingofthesick.Themotivewaspureandgenuine,justasthefocusofmedicinewasintended
tobe.Thishelpsmetounderstandtheinitialobjectiveofmedicalprofessionals,andassistmein
understandingthewaythiscontrastswiththatoftheforthcoming.
During my research, I found that many of the medical professionals at the time of the
Holocaust began to abuse their extensive knowledge of the human body, and in turn used it for
evil instead of good. The years just before and during the Holocaust, the idea of eugenics was
introduced to society. ThesephysiciansanddoctorsunderHitlerparticipatedinproceduresthat

Harrison

beganassimplesterilizationofthosewhosufferedfromdisabilitiesandchronicillnesses,and
quicklyevolvedtotheeuthanizationofentireracesthatwereseenasinferior.Barondesslater
noted;Gradually,themedicalprofessionembracedthebeliefthattocureindividualswasone
thing,buttohealthenationwasincomparablymoreimportant.Thus,themajorityofthe
professionadoptedtheideasofracehygiene,inasense,asamassivepublichealthmeasure:
TheaimofgeneratingpureAryanshadtakenprecedenceoverthemostfundamentalethical
issuesinmedicine.(Barondess)Thisquote,inparticular,addressestheideathatIattemptto
unfoldinmyinquiryprojectthatthevaluesandintentionsofmedicinehadbeenaltered
drasticallyduringthistimeperiod.ThewayBarondessexplainedthesenewfounddesireshelp
metounderstandthereasoningbehindsuchachangethisiswhatsocietybegantosanctify.
Edmund D. Pellegrino, MD of Georgetown University Medical Center
wrote an article attempting to address the reasoning behind these moral
failings of medical professionals during this time, and who it is that is to be
blamed for these shortcomings. The article was published in the journal
Nuremburg Trials: Newspaper Accounts and is titled, The Nazi Doctors and
Nuremberg: Some Moral Lessons Revisited.
Bioethical researcher, Edmund Pellegrino, reminds us of why it is that
we must study such errors, and why we mustnt jump to the conclusion that
the medical professionals themselves are not to be blamed entirely. He
explains, not all of the Nazi physicians were mentally derangedthey
believed they were doing the right thing. If we are to avoid even attenuated
errors of the same kind, we are obliged to examine a few of their errors even
now (Pellegrino). This quotes is beneficial to my inquiry project in that it

Harrison

explains the reasoning behind why revisiting these situations is so important

in the field of bioethics, and why we should not solely persecute the doctors.
Today, though our values may not be as atrocious as they were then, we still
must be aware of them and the effects that may be having on professional
fields that impact our society by way of the treatment of individuals. The
Nazi doctors at the time did not appear to be wrong or deranged so I must
look at these values with a subjective view when developing my inquiry
project.
Pellegrino closes his article by addressing what he sees to be the most
important lesson in the Nuremberg Trials and where it is that we should
search when looking for blame. He explains, Moral premises must be valid if
morally valid conclusions are to be drawn. A morally repulsive conclusion
stems from a morally inadmissible premise (Pellegrino). This quote, though
a bit confusing to me at first, really struck me once I unfolded it. My inquiry
project focuses on the failings of medical professionals during the Holocaust.
In relation to this quote, it addresses the morally repulsive conclusion. This
being said, society (under Hitler) is what should be at blame for these
shortcomings. While the medical professionals did play a role in these
crimes, the authority over them and societys values at the time were who
set this morally inadmissible premise in the first place. When tying this in
to my inquiry project, I must take into account that the hands by which these
unethical experiments took place, were just following directions and striving
for the applause of society in doing what they believed was right.

Harrison

My process of choosing the preceding articles and quotations was

based on my overall purpose of my inquiry project. I knew that in order to
analyze the concept of the altered focus of medicine, I must take into
account the antecedent purpose, and compare it to that of during the
Holocaust. This is why I chose Barondesss quotations. I thought they did a
wonderful job at summarizing my beginning focus of my project. Then, I
knew I wanted to understand the reasoning behind this shift, and where this
shift originated. Pellegrinos article addressed these questions that I had and
helped me to understand the development of this unfortunate transition. The
last quote that I included from him, about the moral premises leading to
morally repulsive conclusion encompassed the entirety of my inquiry
project- why it is that these medical professionals focus began to shift to
such an undesirable, inhumane intention if they were originally born with the
passion to heal as most medical professionals are.

Harrison
Works Cited
Barondess, Jeremiah A. "Care of the Medical Ethos, with Some Comments on
Research: Reflections after the Holocaust." Perspectives in
Biology and Medicine 43.3 (2000): 308-24. Web.
Pellegrino, Edmund D. "The Nazi Doctors and Nuremberg: Some Moral
Lessons Revisited." Annals of Internal Medicine Ann Intern
Med 127.4 (1997): 307. Web.

Harrison

Peer Response to Shareefa Kamals Research Review

1) Given the Research Review assignment, and what this writer has
written so far, how do you see this draft meeting the requirements?
a. I think that Shareefas paper was very well written and followed
the guidelines for this assignment in an effective manner.
2) What is the writer doing well in this draft? You should quote back to the
writers particular sentences or sections that you think are strong, and
also say why you think they work.
a. I think that she did a wonderful job at addressing such an intense
topic. She explained the horrible situations that women faced in
a way that was very respectful, as to not revolt me, as the reader
with what could be very graphic descriptions, and yet still elicits
an emotional response from me. This allows her passion for this
topic to be shared with those who read her paper. An example of
when she uses this technique is when she described the situation
of the women stationed at Auschwitz.
3) Where is the writer falling short of this assignment, based on what you
have in front of you in this draft?
a. I think that Shareefa did a really great job on this paper, and it is
honestly difficult to find a particular place where it falls short.
The only thing I would suggest is maybe adding more information
about how each of these quotes is useful to the topic. She did a
great job as summing the usefulness of each of the quotes at the
end, but maybe it would be more effective to add some of this
information throughout the paper, since that is the main
objective of this assignment.
4) How does the writer do with the quotation sandwich approach to
utilizing source material in this draft?
a. I think that she did a great job at utilizing sources in her paper!
5) Based on what this person has written so far, where does the writer
need to add more information? Why do you need that info, as a writer?
a. Once again, the only thing I would suggest would be just to
connect the quotes and the purpose she has for using these
quotes, throughout the paper!