A web-based course for health care personnel working in prison

The Norwegian Medical Association, in cooperation with World Medical Association, has developed a web-based course on Human rights and ethics for prison doctors. Various associations and organisations have also contributed to the course.

The prison doctor's challenges
Doctors working in prisons face problems that are different from those that doctors working with the ordinary population meet. Prison doctors must be able to provide adequate health care in the special environments that exist in prisons. The doctor's conduct must not be in conflict with international human rights and ethical standards.

In many countries education of prison doctors is not a priority. Many doctors do not even have access to international conventions and rules regulating health care services for prisoners. They encounter human rights violations, but do not know how to deal with them adequately. We hope this course will meet some of the needs many prison doctors have for more knowledge and skills in human rights and medical ethics.

Objectives of the programme
The objectives of the course are to present relevant international statements regulating the medical treatment of prisoners and to raise prison doctors' awareness of their role in various areas of conflicting interests between the prisoner (patient) and the prison administration, for example, hunger strikes, the patient's right to confidentiality, certifying prisoners for special punishment, etc.

Accessible from anywhere
The course is accessible for everyone with an Internet connection. Doctors and other health personnel working in prison can take the course at their own pace and whenever they want. The participants do not have to complete the whole course in one go. The course is divided into lessons and the system records the lessons the participant has completed.

Accreditation
The Norwegian Medical Association has accredited the course for 12 hours/points in post graduate and continuing medical education. They have applied for accreditation from the European Accreditation Council for CME.

No course fee
No course fee will be charged.

Financing
The course is sponsored by The Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The authors and editors have contributed without receiving any fees.

The course is accessible at: http://lupin-nma.net/