Médecine tropicale : revue du Corps de santé colonial
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In this article, the author describes, in layman's terms, the legal framework for international humanitarian operations. He explains a number of complex and intricate principles used in these situations. He acknowledges the burden that legal considerations place on humanitarian organizations but also demonstrates that legal expertise is an indispensable tool in the provision of humanitarian services.
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Governmental humanitarian action is an old concept in France, that is a topic of current interest. To conduct humanitarian action, the French government has deployed various facilities. The military biological risk team was established to control epidemics, provide expertise during epidemiological emergencies, and conduct mass vaccination programs. The author describe the missions carried out by the biological risk team during the 1990s as an illustration of governmental humanitarian action.
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This article beckons readers to reflect on the extreme acts of violence inflicted on populations when civil warfare degenerates into war against civilians. The authors raise the issue of political, media, and humanitarian choices determining the response of industrial countries to crisis situations in economically challenged countries. They advocate an approach based on the "assist and testify" principle of Médecins Sans Frontières.
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Sensitivity, specificity, and predictive value are the standard parameters used to evaluate the efficacy of diagnostic tests. However all three parameters assume the existence of a gold standard test. ⋯ The solution involves assessment of agreement between two raters. This article based on an example drawn from an African setting describes the value and computation of the most widely used tool for assessing agreement and reproducibility of measures, i.e., the kappa coefficient.
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The main goal of emergency medicine training is to teach the wide range of sciences and skills necessary to recognize and stabilize emergency situations. Emergency medicine training has proven highly effective in developed countries especially with regard to organization of survival medicine. This type of training is especially important in sub-Saharan Africa where there is a severe shortage of intensive care specialists and an almost total lack of other personnel qualified to manage life-threatening trauma and disease. ⋯ Students undergo regular assessment of their scientific knowledge and practical competencies after each module. As additional prerequisites for the diploma, they must be certified in first aid and rescue and present a research paper. Despite the lack of faculty and teaching materials, this program is expected to increase the number of emergency medical care providers and improve access to high-quality emergency care services.