I just started working at a research hospital. One problem I've heard mentioned from several people is the difficulty of getting black patients to participate i

I just started working at a research hospital. One problem I've heard mentioned from several people is the difficulty of getting black patients to participate in studies or even consent to having their biological samples used for research. If you think this is "illogical", then you're probably (1) don't belong to a lower status group in American society and (2) haven't read much about the history of medical experimentation. Tuskegee wasn't an isolated incident, before the advent of modern consent & ethics standard, medical experimentation in the US preyed on the lower rungs of society. Some examples: * Holmeburg prison: http://www.amazon.com/Acres-Skin-Experiments-Holmesburg-Prison/dp/0415923360 http://www.amazon.com/Acres-Skin-Experiments-Holmesburg-Pris... * Development of modern gynecology through live experiments on slaves: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/J._Marion_Sims#Medical_experimentation_on_slaves http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/J._Marion_Sims#Medical_experime... * Whole-body radiation exposure experiment in the 60s: http://articles.latimes.com/2007/oct/06/local/me-saenger6 http://articles.latimes.com/2007/oct/06/local/me-saenger6 * Immortalized cell line from Henrietta Lacks without her permission or that of her family: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Henrietta_Lacks http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Henrietta_Lacks and, of course, there was eugenics: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eugenics_in_the_United_States#Compulsory_sterilization http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eugenics_in_the_United_States#C...