Air date: December 5, 2010

Hosts: Eric Meslin, PhD, Barbara Lewis

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Interview: Susan Reverby, PhD, professor of women’s and gender studies, Wellesley College

Jonathan D. Moreno, PhD, professor of medical ethics & the history and sociology of science; Senior fellow, University of Pennsylvania Center for Bioethics & The Center for American Progress

When it was revealed earlier this fall that American scientists working in Guatemala during the 1940’s had intentionally infected prisoners with syphilis, the U.S. State Department issued an apology almost immediately.

The discovery was made by historian Susan Reverby, PhD, of Wellesley College.

Today, joining Barbara Lewis to talk about that story, and the ramifications it’s having more than 60 years later, are Dr. Eric Meslin, our regular bioethicist here on Sound Medicine. And on the line from Philadelphia, Dr. Jonathan Moreno, senior fellow the University of Pennsylvania Center for Bioethics and at the Center for American Progress.

Additional Resources:

• Read about Susan Reverby's discovery of the American syphilis experiment in 1940's Guatemala.
• Find out more about Dr. Jonathan Moreno and his research at the Center for American Progress.
• Visit the Indiana University Center for Bioethics, directed by Eric Meslin, PhD.