{"id":5396,"date":"2014-11-19T03:14:34","date_gmt":"2014-11-19T11:14:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/news.consciencelaws.org\/?p=5396"},"modified":"2018-03-05T21:44:17","modified_gmt":"2018-03-06T05:44:17","slug":"navy-nurse-should-not-be-punished-for-declining-to-force-feed-guantanamo-detainees","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/news.consciencelaws.org\/?p=5396","title":{"rendered":"Navy Nurse Should Not be Punished for Declining to Force-Feed Guant\u00e1namo Detainees"},"content":{"rendered":"

PHR Welcomes American Nurses Association\u2019s (ANA) Statement Supporting Nurses\u2019 Professional Autonomy<\/h2>\n

Physicians for Human Rights<\/p>\n

New York, NY – 11\/19\/2014<\/p>\n

Physicians for Human Rights<\/a> (PHR) today welcomed the American Nurses Association\u2019s (ANA) statement supporting a nurse who refused to force-feed Guant\u00e1namo detainees based on his professional ethical obligations. PHR urged the U.S. Navy to end any disciplinary actions against the nurse, who has been charged with misconduct and faces potential discharge from the military.<\/p>\n

\u201cNurses, like physicians, have professional duties to respect the autonomous decisions of their patients and never participate in ill-treatment or torture,\u201d said Dr. Vincent Iacopino, PHR\u2019s senior medical advisor. \u201cThis nurse has shown exemplary commitment to his profession\u2019s ethics by refusing to comply with a military policy that has no clinical justification and is inherently harmful. The Navy should not punish him for refusing to compromise established ethical principles.\u201d<\/p>\n

Today\u2019s statement represents the first time the ANA has spoken publicly about force-feeding at Guant\u00e1namo, signaling the wider nursing community\u2019s interest in the nurse\u2019s situation and the military\u2019s treatment of medical professionals. The ANA also released communications it had with top defense officials urging them not to punish the nurse for exercising his professional rights and duties. PHR emphasized that the codes of conduct for nurses and physicians mandate respect for patient autonomy and the principle of doing no harm, and that military clinicians are legally and ethically bound to comply.<\/p>\n

The Navy is considering holding an administrative trial that could lead to the nurse\u2019s discharge from the Navy, in which he has served for 18 years. His decision not to participate in force-feeding was revealed through Abu Wa\u2019el Dhiab, a Guant\u00e1namo detainee challenging his force-feeding in federal court. Dhiab\u2019s case has shed light on the cruel and unnecessary methods used at Guant\u00e1namo, including the use of five-point restraint chairs and forced cell extractions.<\/p>\n

\u201cAll physicians and nurses share a duty to put their patients first and act in their best interests, no matter the circumstances,\u201d said Widney Brown, PHR\u2019s director of programs. \u201cPunishing this nurse for upholding the humane treatment of his patients sends a message that medical professionalism is not respected at Guant\u00e1namo.\u201d<\/p>\n

The World Medical Association and the American Medical Association are among the leading medical groups that prohibit force-feeding of competent adults. PHR said that health professionals should never take part, and pointed out that the main purpose of the Department of Defense\u2019s force-feeding policy is to keep detainees from protesting over a decade of indefinite detention without charge. In response to criticism of these practices, the U.S. government has applied secrecy rules to any information regarding its treatment of hunger strikers.<\/p>\n

PHR calls on the U.S. government to:<\/p>\n