In these troubling times of never-ending conflicts, violence against doctors, and heinous attempts by some repressive governments to subvert the fundamental freedoms, professional autonomy, and clinical independence of physicians, the World Medical Association (WMA) has pushed for stronger "ethical guidance."
Dr. Osahon Enabulele, the WMA's immediate past president, issued the call during the Lancet Commission's Report on Medicine, Nazism, and the Holocaust unveiling in Berlin, Germany.
Virtually speaking on behalf of the WMA, Dr. Enabulele reaffirmed the organization's unwavering dedication to enhancing its collaboration with forward-thinking organizations such as the Lancet Commission.
“WMA remains committed to these ethical guidelines and will ensure they are continuously updated to remain relevant, and to accommodate for changes in the research environment, medical technologies, and other changes that impact on healthcare delivery/medical practice,” he stated.
Reiterating WMA’s “strong condemnation of the Hamas terrorist attack on Israel, the immediate-past President of WMA equally restated WMA’s fervent call on all parties to cease hostilities and to adhere to the principle of medical neutrality.
“It traces the development of medical research during the Nazi era and portrays individual perpetrators, as well as individual victims and imprisoned physicians, who, for example, treated their fellow inmates under the most agonizing conditions, including in concentration camps.
“The report illustrates the extent to which research carried out during the Nazi era continues to have an impact today. It is still so important to sensitize the medical profession to the extent to which many findings originate from this period. This report therefore provides an excellent springboard for the work we need to continue, going forward,” he stated.
