Speaker
Description
Jonas Salk came to Pittsburgh in 1947 where he successfully developed the first vaccine for poliomyelitis. Mass vaccination began in 1955 and he was lauded as a national hero. Peter, Darrell, and Jonathan Salk donated the papers pertaining primarily to his Pittsburgh era research career to the University of Pittsburgh, including records on thousands of Pittsburgh area children who participated in early trials of the vaccine before the more well-known national trial.
This collection presents opportunities for case-studies in vaccine development, both at a technical and ethical level, and the public interest and response to it. The recent politicization of vaccines makes this an especially valuable resource. You may consult the online finding aid at pi.tt/salkarchive .
In this presentation I will explain the rules we put in place to access these medical records, seeking to balance the ethical norms embodied in HIPAA regulations, while attempting to provide reasonable access to both researchers and surviving patients and their family members.
