Case of Dr. Eric Poehlman Ethical Violation

Data is the epicenter around which all research studies lies, right from the health survey to number of users of particular technology. People believe in facts and surveys which depend on data. Researchers work on to gather data, examine and interpret the information. The foremost duty of any researcher is to protect the integrity of the data. One well reported case of Dr. Poehlman of scientific misconduct that made the news in 2000 is discussed here. Dr. Eric Poehlman, from university of Vermont a well-known researcher in the field of ageing and obesity is now known for ethical violation. Eric Poehlman the obesity investigator had done numerous studies and showed the world how obesity and ageing is related. Especially, how menopause and aging and obesity are interlinked. The world believed the great obesity expert until the issue of research misconduct arises. In the case of Eric, it was investigated that he handled the study data by himself and fabricated few data and then falsified few and pooled funding from different organizations like National Institute of Aging and National Institute of Health.

The lab technician DeNino had sensed that data in spread sheet has been manipulated. The falsification of data which misleading to get more grants. His study on ageing and to tend to show a trend to gain grants from NIH. Dr. Poehlman performed various research activities. His study on Alzheimer’s disease and its metabolism, the study of menopause on all 35 women. The study should have reported the real case facts and if the results are not as desired it might be due to the less number of subjects taken into account for the study. But either of it was not done. It is misconduct with fabrication and falsification of data. The effect of such study is a havoc as this led to misinterpretation of data. Longitudinal study of aging: The study of ageing where it all began. The data of the individuals were manipulated so that it matches the hypothesis. The lab technician working on the similar project couldn’t understand how in overnight the data provided the statistical results expected. The Longitudinal study of menopause: The study was designed to analyse the effect of menopause on metabolic activities. The woman before and after menopause were examined twice over a six year period. The hypothesis was that metabolic changes are related to menopause rather than aging. Based on evidence, it was found that this longitudinal study was not conducted but just a fabrication of data of 3 women to 35. This bogus study was proposed to acquire NIH grants and was reported in many scientific journals and articles. Alzheimer’s disease: The study of Alzheimer’s is another example of data fabrication and falsification. The objective of this study to analyse the variations of Alzheimer’s with age matched control subject was deceptive. According to the inspection, the initial statistics of subjects such as age, height was moulded from the original.

Also, the numbers of subjects were doubled by fabricating data to prove the established hypothesis. There can be many reasons but one clear reason is about the data should have been produced with actuarial results. Moreover, fabrication of data is unethical. This is a misconduct of fabrication, falsification of data. To reduce such misconduct with respect to data falsification and fabrication, data sharing requirement have been imposed for all funding projects. Such a solution will allow data to be certified before they are published or accepted for grants. In conclusion, research ethics lies in producing the result as they are not for the purpose of seeking grants.

The case of Dr. Eric Poelhman is an awakening call for all researchers to maintain integrity of data and scientific research. “As a graduate researcher I will always be honest and truthful throughout the process and stand for the scientific community and report any scientific misconduct made at an individual level. I ensure to be genuinely performing and showcasing the research. I will always seek the right path under any circumstances or any pressure even in my professional front. ”