Essay Example on MSF: Providing Medical Care to Distressed Populations

Introduction

Founded by 13 physicians and journalists who were not satisfied by the Red Cross neutrality in 1971, Doctors without borders (Medecins Sans Frontieres, MSF in France) is an international Nonprofit humanitarian group aimed at providing medical care to individuals who are in distress with the inclusion of victims of natural disasters or political violence (Fox, 2014). The population helped by this organization have little or no access to appropriate resources used in medical treatment. MSF headquarters are in Geneva, and its establishment has shown its call in combating various disease in diverse conflict regions as guided by the organization's vision and mission statements. The organization was awarded a peace Noble Prize in 1999(Fox, 2014). The organization has continued to draw passion in the corporate statement with the corporate vision statement determining the corporation's prospects and the mission laying out the various tactics which can be exploited by the organization to realize the set future.

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Organization Mission

The mission of the MSF is to offer impartial medical reliefs especially to victims of diseases, war, and the natural disasters as well as the human made disasters regardless of the person's political affiliation, race or religion. The mission of the organization majorly emphasizes caring for humanity. The mission can be divided into two different components: first, improving health and second, improving communities (Fox, 2014). Since it is a nongovernmental organization, MSF has no limitation, especially in regions where it can provide its services. It recognizes how far natural disasters and conflicts of war hinders individuals quality of life hence it commits itself and uses all the available resources to offer compassionate medical care to save the lives of those in need and also put a smile in their faces. As the second component states, the organization's mandate goes as far as restoring communities and ensure the betterment of their conditions (Simeant, 2005). MSF provides the fulfilment of its role by speaking out about the diverse problems faced by the societies and also advocating for the necessary help. Additionally, the corporation is very active when it comes to medical research to provide some long-lasting solutions to all medically related challenges.

Promoting equal Opportunity and Improve Quality of Life

Promoting equal opportunity: Doctors without borders aims at prioritizing the needs of all individuals regardless of their race, religion or political affiliation to ensure that it remains impartial when providing its services. As a leader, the organization has a proper understanding of how to respond to various emergencies, and it ensures exploitation of its experience in this particular area to focus all the resources where they are most needed. The organizations carry out their operations in different regions, including those places which are hard to access, or the other players have refused to access (Fox, 2014). The continued effort by the corporation proofs how the MSF can achieve its impartiality principle. Since the MSF was established in 1971, the organization has carried out its operations in an aggressive and challenging manner, ensuring that it is committed to neutrality, impartiality and independence. These three principles act as a guide to the NGO and enable it to respond rapidly to diverse emergences and also offer some lifesaving medical care in regions which are hard to access by other organizations (Redfield, 2013). The corporation's commitment enables it to help individuals in dire needs without following some priorities like those of the media, funders or politicians.

Improving the quality of life: the organization carries out its operations in more than 65 countries around the globe(Simeant, 2005). As medical first responders, the team has over 42,000 logisticians, nurses and doctors who are always in the first scene and can sometimes arrive in just a matter of minutes to respond to the diverse needs of the individuals whose lives are upended by crisis and emergencies (Simeant, 2005). The MSF can respond to any emergency very quickly; for instance, when a devastating earthquake hit Haiti in 2010, the first casualty of the earthquake was treated by the MSF team very promptly within minutes (Fox, 2014). The organization had some of its staff in that particular country that responded very fast. It helped the victims of the earthquake disaster regardless of the damage faced by their medical facilities as they tried a full emergency response. The organization improves an individual's quality of life because even if the team is not active in the affected country, it can quickly deploy within few hours (Simeant, 2005). Also, the organization has some prepackaged disaster kits which include; an inflatable hospital, surgical theatre and obstetric equipment, which are used as models by emergency relief corporations globally.

The MSF has warehouses and logistics centres in the world. Here, the corporations buy, tests and stores equipment like nutritional suppliers, water processing facilities, power supplies, communication materials and Toyota Land cruisers which are very helpful when carrying out its operations(Redfield, 2013). Additionally, the organization helps improve quality of life through its ability to save lives since it has a thousand shelter kits, tents and non-perishable items which can be quickly loaded in planes and flown into the crisis and emergency area within 24 hours (Fox, 2014). The permanent emergency team of the MSF works in their headquarters with the experts deploying to coordinate their responses as well as assessing the needs immediately the disaster strikes. Also, experienced MSF staff can be called from the pool, and they can stay in the affected area for some days.

Barriers

The MSF fieldworkers often find themselves in insecure working environments since working in some regions implies an inherent danger or risk is present. First, cultural barriers: working in the fields with MSF corporation can be very different for the staff from anything else they have experienced in the past (Bortolotti, 2011). The members of that specific society can also have some different social and even medical practitioners that the staff will have to adapt to so as attend to the critical health issues of the patients with the limited resources. Second, social barriers: the MSF team is often composed of medical and some medical workers who have to act hand in hand with the communities local staff (Bortolotti, 2011). To ensure the success of the operation requires the individuals to have excellent diplomatic abilities, social and cultural sensitivity as well as collaborative skills.

Impact on Funding Sources, Policy and Legislation on Service Delivery

The MSF Corporation rarely takes any funds from businesses, governments or any other institution to provide its services. Instead, the organization majorly relies on the generosity of some individual donors. More than 90% of the organization's income often comes from private donors who tend to give small amounts (Bortolotti, 2011). When an emergency occurs, the organization does not have to wait for the release of official funds or for the media to show its interest. However, the team acts very fast to save the lives of the individuals based on the need. The financial independence of the organization means that the aid offered can never be used to further any governments, military or political goals. The organization takes the responsibility of accounting to their actions on the patients as well as donors and be transparent on any choice that they make (Fox, 2014). Debates, evaluations and critical reviews on the organizations public positioning, field practices and the broader humanitarian issues are very vital to improving the organization's operations.

Impact on Health and Safety Needs of the Community

Doctors without limits organization have some positive effects on the health and safety needs of all the members in diverse communities. Some of these impacts include; first, access to healthcare: not every disaster or crisis strikes without issuing some warnings (Simeant, 2005). Some even unfold over decades like in cases of diseases which devastate populations; hence individuals get excluded from healthcare due to instability of the health system due to overwhelming. In most of the times when the crisis subsides, individuals face difficulties in accessing healthcare in these regions since the government is overwhelmed or new health issues like cholera outbreak emerge (Fox, 2014). The MSF organization, therefore, works to ensure that all individuals have equal access to healthcare and can easily tackle any disease which might require long-term treatments like HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis, and even the neglected tropical illnesses like sleeping sickness.

Second, long-term care: the MSF team provides daily health care for large populations like surgery, accident and emergency as well as management of chronic illnesses. Although sometimes there may not be some functioning healthcare infrastructures, the organization establishes and renovates clinics, introduces ambulances and even sets up treatment programs (Redfield, 2013). Since the corporation has worked in some countries for several years, fast withdrawal might create a healthcare vacuum which forces them to return immediately. However, to avoid this, the MSF works with other aid corporations as well as the governments to enhance healthcare and end emergency threats.

References

Bortolotti, D. (2011). Hope in hell: Inside the World of Doctors Without Borders. Firefly Books.

Fox, R. C. (2014). Doctors without borders: humanitarian quests, impossible dreams of Medecins Sans Frontieres. JHU Press.

Redfield, P. (2013). Life in crisis: The ethical journey of doctors without borders. Univ of California Press.

Simeant, J. (2005). What is going global? The internationalization of French NGOs 'without borders'. Review of International Political Economy, 12(5), 851-883.Retrieved from https://www.diplomatie.gouv.fr/IMG/pdf/FrenchNGOs.pdf