Human Rights and Medical Education in Kenya

1
Human Rights and Medical Education in Kenya A
Personal Perspective
From student to practitioner

• Dr Ahmed Kalebi MBChB MMed

2
Core competencies

• How do we move from learning about Human Rights
  (HR) to promoting and protecting HR on a personal
  and community level?
• University of Minnesota
• Human Rights Resource Centre

3
Importance of experience

• We must share, listen, and respect each
  others stories and journeys, working for human
  rights and human rights education!
• University of Minnesota
• Human Rights Resource Centre

4
Phase one

• Early 90s
• Human Rights was synonymous to political activism
  associated with the 1st liberation struggle
  fight for multiparty democracy and political
  space in Kenya
• Human Rights civil rights
• No mention of HR in high schools

5
Phase two

• Mid-90s to new millennium
• No formal mention of HR in a single class or
  teaching session through out medical school
• Joined student human rights committee (AMSUN -
  political and economical motivation)
• Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights (e.g.
  healthcare, housing) are privileges

6
Phase three

• Human Rights NGO initiate contacts with medics
  for purpose of realising own agenda rather than
  education.
• Most active was anti-torture movement where
  medics got involved as examiners
• Students involvement as part of increasing
  numbers
• Excitement in getting involved in outlawed
  frontiers

7
Phase four

• As a qualified doctor, services sought after by
  HR NGOs and primarily seen as professionals
  dissociated from activists
• No structure in HR work even after 2nd
  liberation
• HR only concerned with violations
• Awareness of link between daily life and HR
  awareness that failure is in the system the
  State, Society, NGOs, professional bodies

8
Phase five

• Professional activist thrust in the HR world with
  a schizophrenic existence
• HR knowledge only for lawyers
• Statistics would be shocking
• Disaffection
• Anger and withdrawal
• Cross-roads in career paths ?
• ? Reawakening
• Lessons learnt ltgt

9
(No Transcript)
10
?Phase six

• How do we move from learning about Human Rights
  to promoting and protecting them on a personal
  and community level? University of Minnesota
  Human Rights Resource Center
• We must share, listen, and respect each others
  stories and journeys, working for human rights
  and human rights education!

11
Utopia of HR among HCP

• Training in human rights must be a
  fundamental and integral aspect of all curricula
  for health professionals. This training should
  address factors affecting human rights practice,
  such as knowledge, skills, attitudes, and ethical
  research practices. Knowledge of and competence
  and proficiency . should be a requirement for
  qualification and registration
• Truth and Reconciliation Commission report, 1998

12
Ultimate goal

• HCPs should be TRAINED to integrate HR in their
  daily professional lives
• Respect
• Protect
• Promote
• Fulfil
• Acknowledgement and progressive realisation of
  National Plans of Action for Human Rights
  Education.

13
Human Rights Learning Wheel
14
University of Nairobi
15
Thank you