The politics of choice: roles of the medical profession under Nazi rule
Lekisch, K.; McDonald, J.H.
Texas Medicine 85(6): 32-39
1989
ISSN/ISBN: 0040-4470 PMID: 2660316 Document Number: 336253
In 1933, when Adolf Hitler took power, the German medical community was faced with intense crisis and change. Because social processes become more clearly defined in times of crisis, the days of Nazi rule offer an excellent opportunity to examine health care and moral issues. This article describes historical events that illustrate physicians' and medical students' role in the political process. In addition, we detail four types of responses made by physicians and students: flight, conformism, individual resistance, and group resistance. We conclude that if the role of physicians is to aid and protect patients against disease or experimentation on humans, then he or she must maintain heightened political awareness in order to deal with social crises before they overwhelm any response.