Health Workers in the Firing Line

05/29/2013

Whether it’s health facilities being used to identify and apprehend enemies, or ambulances blocked from accessing the wounded, the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) and Doctors Without Borders (MSF) strongly condemn any act that deliberately aims to distort medical action and to deny healthcare to the sick and wounded.

A patient cannot be an enemy. The sick and the injured are not combatants.

Medical ethics oblige all health workers to care for all patients and to keep the medical act free from interference. Medical staff must act impartially, prioritising the delivery of care solely on medical grounds. To do that, the places where they work — ambulances, mobile clinics, health posts and hospitals — must be safe, neutral spaces.

The full article continues a thttp://www.thoughtleader.co.za/msf/2013/05/29/health-workers-in-the-firing-line/ on Thought Leader’s website.