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Hospitals and healthcare workers must be protected from the waging of war

Student’s Name

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Professor’s Name

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Hospitals and healthcare workers must be protected from the waging of war

Question Two

Healthcare workers and medical facilities should receive special protection from military

attacks considering the risk they undertake while on duty for the survival of the casualties of war.

The article establishes and outlines the commitment that the parties engaged in war should

adhere to as far as the safety of health workers is concerned. According to international

humanitarian and human rights law, hospitals and clinics, and healthcare professionals are

shielded from intrusion and assault within military situations. 196 nations officially signed the

1949 Geneva Protocols, including Russia and Ukraine, which also adopted Additional Protocol I

(Alnahhas, Mishori & Heisler, 2022). Therefore, it should not be an exception to the case of

Ukraine and Russia in that it is not new to conflicts and hence the two should as well adhere to

the conventional code of conduct regarding the safety of medical personnel.

Protecting healthcare staff is significant in that they are required for emergencies that

arise in war zones. From the article, the international humanitarian and human rights law call for

the protection and fair and balanced diagnosis of both injured individuals and soldiers, alongside

the protection and independent and objective care of hospitals, transit, and staff, from all factions

in a war. They also call for health workers to diagnose both civilians and combatants equally,

following patient confidentiality. It is thus important to understand and respect any set code of

conduct, especially for the sensitive group of people within society as medical professionals.

In summary, healthcare staff should be protected in times for the other public good. It is

regrettable when medical workers and infrastructure are attacked in hostilities. They can have a

terrible lengthy impact on the inhabitants and have a catastrophic short-term impact on whole

healthcare systems. They include the incapacity to treat casualties brought on by military
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confrontation, a diminished capacity to provide medical treatment for those who have serious

diseases, and a failure to protect public health and control contagious disease epidemics.

Question Three

World leaders should take action to protect healthcare workers in war zones because

doing so mean the safety of the humans within the specific region. People and soldiers who get

injuries during the war are treated by doctors. In the event the doctors and healthcare facilities

are subjected to demolitions, then the casualties of war would have no one to attend to them. As

a result, the affected society would face deaths that otherwise could be prevented. It is thus

important for nations to come to the attention of such crises that arise while two conflicting

groups face each other in a war. Nations should thus come to the aid of the healthcare workers to

see to it that their rights are not violated as spelled out in the international humanitarian and

human rights law. The initiative would be of great importance and a game changer as violence

can eventually be limited as the parties involved commit to the set code of conduct.

The events witnessed in Ukraine by the Russian government should be discouraged by

the unity of nations in the world. The attacks seen on health infrastructure violate the

international humanitarian and human rights law of medical personnel and it's time that countries

rise and unite for a purpose to promote sanity in society. Therefore, Systematic healthcare

atrocities that massacre, imprison, and torture dozens of health professionals as well as target and

demolish many medical facilities rob patients of the treatment they deserve. No punishment or

culpability has been meted out to Russia for these atrocities or for airstrikes that badly harm or

demolished health facilities (Alnahhas, Mishori & Heisler, 2022). The world should voice out in

one accord that necessary action should be taken for the nations or groups of people that do not

respect the set international laws for the safety of life.

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Conclusively, the international community must press on the implementation of the

measures outlined in UN Security Council Resolution 2286 to safeguard doctors in periods of

warfare as well as the thorough collection, preservation, and documentation of information on

war criminals and perhaps other humanitarian breaches.

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Reference

Alnahhas, H., Mishori, R., & Heisler, M. (2022). Hospitals and healthcare workers must be

protected from the waging of war. BMJ. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.o764