First, do no harm

Article By: Rebekah Kendal

Rape is rape. The crime is horrendous no matter the circumstances. And yet, sometimes we are a little more outraged. Sometimes the particulars jar us more than usual. Sometimes the details make us question our understanding of society, humankind and the very notion of human rights.

This happens, without fail, when children are raped. Perhaps the reason for this is that there is a commonly-held belief — at least among law-abiding citizens — that children should be protected. Their innocence and vulnerability demands this of society.

We are also more outraged than usual when paramedics, nurses or doctors are raped or killed in the line of duty. They are the heroes of our society — a group of people on whom we all (even criminals and prisoners) depend to save lives. As such, there is a tacit understanding that these individuals should be granted some level of immunity.

For, if they are not granted this protection, the entire system falls apart. If paramedics refuse — and some would say rightly so — to service a community that has broken these laws of protection, the entire community suffers. If doctors, fearing for their own safety, refuse to treat criminals, where does the blame lie? Perhaps more pertinently, why should they be obliged to do so?

Currently, those in the medical profession are required to treat all who come before them equally. They are compelled to save the lives of both the victim and the criminal who perpetrated the crime. This is based on the notion of the sanctity of human life.

Those of us who subscribe to this principle would not rob a doctor of his cellphone while he administers CPR to the victim of a car accident on the side of the road. We would not rape a medical student outside the blood bank in a hospital. We would not rape a paramedic while she tries to dress the burn wounds on a toddler.

But we are not criminals. We believe in the sanctity of human life; they do not.

So, why should they be afforded the same care? While the right to emergency medical treatment is guaranteed, so too is the right to life, the right to dignity, and the right to bodily and psychological integrity.

Although it is tempting to suggest that if criminals do not respect the Constitution, they should not be granted the freedoms guaranteed in the Constitution, this is not the answer. For in doing so, we become a society of vigilantes. We sacrifice our own ideals of human rights in an attempt to correct the violations of others.

So, where does that leave us? Outraged and indignant, yes. But it also serves as a reminder that medical care is not just a right, it is also a privilege. A privilege dispensed by quiet heroes who deserve not only our respect, but also our protection. This is the unspoken contract between society and its medics. If we fail to protect those who are able and willing to save our lives, we have no right to demand that they do so.