Should Medical Personnel be Engaged in Assisting in the Retrieval of Information from Detainees?
Abstract
Some say it started with Abu Ghraib some say with Guantanamo; while others insist that it's a commonly accepted practice in civilian jails and detention centers. What I am referring to is the use of health-care personnel in assisting with or becoming directly involved in patient detainee interrogation techniques. The Abu Ghraib indignities that surfaced in the Spring of 2003 in the U.S. did so shortly after the information purporting the abuses, along with photos were passed into the hands of conscientious individuals. The purpose of this paper is to discuss the ethical dilemma facing health-care professionals who are responsible for providing care to detainees in Iraq and Afghanistan. Should medical personnel be engaged in assisting in the retrieval of information from detainees? Does their role in health care give them an added edge necessary to glean important information that might otherwise not be gotten? I believe the medical personnel must operate on a standard of care that separates them from the military intelligence gathering network. Health care providers must adhere not only to the global governance of the Geneva Convention, they are the torchbearers of civil treatment during war; they must remain neutral.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Nov 15, 2005
- Accession Number
- AD1137380
Entities
People
- Jimmy Carlisle
- Maureen E. Goodrich
Organizations
- United States Army Sergeants Major Academy