UN Medical Services Division action against Ebola related stigma and discrimination Monday, 10 November 2014, Global | DM The UN Staff Counsellors Office (SCO), an office of UN Medical Services Division (MSD), New York, is partnering with the UN Cares and Emergency Preparedness and Safety Team (EPST) against stigma and discrimination of UN personnel participating in the Ebola response before, during and after missions in the Ebola outbreak area. The partnership ensures 1) that psychosocial needs of UN Personnel and dependents is appropriately addressed, 2) important psychosocial information materials are available to UN personnel and dependents worldwide, and 3) that there is alignment and coordination amongst Staff Counsellors across geographic boundaries on this issue. The partnership also intends to prevent stigmatization, challenge discrimination, promote and protect human rights around the Ebola virus disease. Why is stigma prevention important? Preventing stigma around Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) is a key responsibility of all UN employees. As in the early days of the AIDS epidemic, healthy people are today being irrationally grouped in with sick people based on demographic similarities or where they spend their time, and the small numbers of people that have been infected are finding their families ostracized by their communities. Inside the UN, we cannot afford such psychosocial overreaction. Not only does such stigmatization go against basic human rights and humanitarian values, the degree to which we are likely to succeed in limiting the Ebola outbreak is directly related to how rationally we approach our handling of it. We must rely on medical evidence as we move forward. We need to give our colleagues and communities our full respect, compassion, and support. Originating from a desire to protect oneself, stigmatization promotes unnecessary silence, fear and shame, causing further spread of the disease. Do not succumb to hysteria and stigmatization The issue of stigmatization was addressed by the Ebola response panel during the Town Hall meeting on 24 October 2014 . Given the nature of EVD, and the ways it is being covered in the media, it is understandable to be afraid of contracting Ebola. That fear may lead us to want to distance ourselves from colleagues, whether we are based in an Ebola affected country or have colleagues returning from the outbreak areas. As Dr. Jillann Farmer, UN Medical Director, recently affirmed, You cannot catch Ebola virus disease from a person who has no symptoms. You cannot catch this disease unless you have direct contact with the bodily fluids of an infected person... It is up to us to model appropriate behaviour... That is my challenge to the UN community. We have to be the ones who lead the world and show that we will not succumb to hysteria and stigmatization. The ICSC Standards of Conduct reminds us that, Freedom from discrimination is a basic human right. International civil servants are expected to respect the dignity, worth and equality of all people without any distinction whatsoever. This includes, of course, someone who may have been exposed to Ebola. As Dr. David Nabarro, Secretary-General’s Special Envoy on Ebola said, the United Nations has “zero tolerance for Ebola-related stigma and discrimination anywhere.” The United Nations Staff Counsellors Office is open daily, and in emergency cases appointments can be made over the weekend. Staff Counsellors are also available daily by Skype. You may contact the Staff Counsellors Office for an appointment at: +1 (212) 963-7044 or via email at: [email protected]. Should you need any additional information, please contact us on [email protected] DUSHYANT JOSHI CHIEF, EMERGENCY PREPAREDNESS AND SUPPORT TEAM UNITED NATIONS
Posted on: Wed, 12 Nov 2014 14:41:33 +0000
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