Medsin National Conference- Bristol 2006

Health Is A Human Right

Topics

Synopsis

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights states that, 'Everyone has the right to a standard of living adequate for the health and well being of himself and his family, including food, clothing, housing, medical care and necessary social services.'

This two-day conference aims to introduce UK medical students and other health care workers to the issues surrounding health care rights. We will be focussing on 3 key issues in order to achieve this: tobacco, NGO's and natural disasters, and migration of health care workers. We hope to address what the above statement means in reality and how it affects us directly as health care workers.

By bringing together around 350 students from universities around Great Britain we aim to address some of the following questions:

Why are there vast inequalities in health - both globally and here in the UK?
What is the obligation on states, the international community, and on us (as citizens and doctors) to ensure that the right to health is met?
How can we as doctors take action to achieve the right to health for our patients - locally and globally? Should we be obliged to work in the developing world?
Why do neglected diseases still exist in the world? What is the obligation on the pharmaceutical industry to develop and provide medicines, even to countries that cannot afford them?
Should the NHS provide drugs for all diseases to everyone, regardless of cost?

We also aim to provide a forum for healthcare students and workers to air their views and ideas regarding world health and to provide a stimulating and fun environment where students and healthcare workers can socialise and share ideas and plans.