Covid-19 pandemic response

THE WORLD MEDICAL ASSOCIATION, INC.
L’ASSOCIATION MEDICALE MONDIALE, INC
ASOCIACION MEDICA MUNDIAL, INC
Centre International de Bureaux FEIN : 13-2566243
Immeuble A “Keynes” Website : www.wma.net Postal Address :
13, chemin du Levant Telephone : (33) 4 50 40 75 75 Boîte Postale 63
01210 FERNEY-VOLTAIRE Fax : (33) 4 50 40 59 37 01210 FERNEY-VOLTAIRE Cedex
France E-mail address : wma@wma.net France
73rd World Health Assembly
Agenda item 3: Covid-19 pandemic response
Over the last decade, we have seen a surge of violence against health personnel worldwide. Since
the beginning of the covid-19 pandemic, this phenomenon has expanded dramatically. Every day,
our medical associations report incidents: threats, insults, stigmatisation from communities and
States. In some countries, physicians are victims of reprisals for denouncing undignified working
conditions, the blatant lack of medical equipment, or for criticizing their government pandemic
responses.
Every day, governments, the media and millions of people pay tribute to the professional dedication
of health personnel working tirelessly in the context of this unprecedent health outbreak. They are at
the frontline and risk their own lives for saving ours. Yet, they are subject to acts of violence in all
regions of the world. This is simply intolerable.
We call on WHO and Member States to finally assess the magnitude and gravity of this scourge
which undermines the very foundations of health systems and ultimately impacts critically on
patient’s health. Violence against health personnel constitutes an international emergency, requiring
urgent actions, including:
• Adequate accountability mechanism by governments against perpetrators of violence against
health personnel;
• Accurate and systematic data collection on violence incidents in relation to the pandemic to
document the phenomenon across the globe;
• Effective information campaigns to keep the public informed and stop misinformation
related to covid-19 contamination;
• Close cooperation between local / state authorities, health professionals’ organisations and
other relevant health actors as well as media organizations to denounce and prevent the
problem of violence.
It is time to realize that violence against health personnel has adverse cascading impacts on the life
of each of us. Physicians and other health personnel members need protection and safe working
conditions in a solid health system. Member States are accountable for making this happen.
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