scholarly journals Round table: Liberté, égalité and fraternité in public health - A Human rights approach to Public (Mental) Health

2019 ◽  
Vol 29 (Supplement_4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Mental Health ◽  
Human Rights ◽  
Public Mental Health ◽  
Living Will ◽  
Right To Health ◽  
International Human Rights ◽  
The Uk ◽  
The Right ◽  
Human Rights Based Approach

Abstract A human rights based approach to Public Health and to Public Mental health offers an opportunity to realize the right to health for all. However, a human rights-based approach to Public Health will require new inter-disciplinary approaches and an innovative frame. This frame should include the use of international human rights standards as a framework for research, policy and practice; the participation of target groups; and the enhancement of inclusion and respect for all. This workshop follows up from the Ljubljana 2018 workshop on human rights and public (mental) health and aims to test the requirements needed to ensure a human rights based approach to public health. For this, a panel of a researcher, ethicist, lawyer and a patient is set up to evaluate three practical cases. What are they advising in these specific cases and what does this mean for the international human rights framework. The outcomes of the panel discussion will be presented by the chair of the workshop. Case 1 Coerced sterilization in the UK The parents of a 21-year old woman with Down’s syndrome in the UK contacted a doctor to have their daughter sterlised our of fear that she may become pregnant. The woman did not have a bodyfriend nor expressed an interest in starting a sexual relationship. The parents stated that - as she had grown up - she had become more aware of the opposite sex and could be “overfamiliar” with people. Therefore sterilisation was needed to protect her in the future. A specialist supported the parents, but a second doctor suggested various methods of contraception as an alternative. Case 2 Euthanasia in the Netherlands A 74-year old incapacitated women with dementia stated several times that she does not want to live anymore. But she has also been heard saying that she likes her life. Under Dutch law, euthanasia is possible if the patient clearly indicates this, the so-called living-will. In this case, the doctor performed euthanasia based on her living will, which was given years earlier, before she was struck by dementia. Case 3 Rape in Northern Ireland A 12-year-old girl from Northern Ireland is raped. Abortion is not possible in this case due to the strict laws prohibiting abortion unless the woman’s life is in danger or there is a permanent or serious risk to her mental or physical health. The girl has to travel to England under police escort to have an abortion, so that a police officer could seize the ‘samples’ from the procedure for evidence. Key messages A human rights based approach to Public Health and to Public Mental health offers an opportunity to realize the right to health for all. It is critical that we do not risk losing the right to health in the rhetoric of the SDGs and ensure that we respond to the need of improving research methods on the promise of leaving no one behind. Mauro Giovanni Carta Contact: [email protected] Dineke Zeegers Paget Contact: [email protected] Els Maeckelberghe Contact: [email protected]

Mental Health and Human Rights: Brazil and the Inter-American Court of Human Rights Jurisprudence

2018 ◽  
Vol 25 (2) ◽  
pp. 236-260
Author(s):  
Carla Aparecida Arena Ventura
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Human Rights ◽  
Right To Health ◽  
Mental Illnesses ◽  
Health Policies ◽  
Health Law ◽  
International Human Rights ◽  
Health And Human Rights ◽  
The Right ◽  
Mental Health Policies

International human rights instruments are important to mental health as a source of international scrutiny of mental health policies and practices. Nevertheless, people with mental illnesses continue to have their rights violated in different settings and situations. The aim of this research was to bring to light human rights violations targeting persons with mental illness judged by the Inter-American Court of Human Rights (IACHR), focusing on countries that ratified or adhered to the American Convention on Human Rights and accepted the jurisdiction of IACHR. Data were collected at the IACHR site through the reading of the Court’s judgments. The research resulted in the case of Damião Ximenes Lopes v. Brazil, which was analysed based on the international and regional human rights framework, specifically focusing on the right to health and mental health, highlighting the intersection between this framework and the mental health law, policies and services in Brazil.

The Origins of Human Rights in Global Health

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lawrence O. Gostin ◽  
Benjamin Mason Meier
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Human Rights ◽  
World War Ii ◽  
Global Health ◽  
International Law ◽  
Right To Health ◽  
Right To Health Care ◽  
Global Standards ◽  
The Right

This chapter introduces the foundational importance of human rights for global health, providing a theoretical basis for the edited volume by laying out the role of human rights under international law as a normative basis for public health. By addressing public health harms as human rights violations, international law has offered global standards by which to frame government responsibilities and evaluate health practices, providing legal accountability in global health policy. The authors trace the historical foundations for understanding the development of human rights and the role of human rights in protecting and promoting health since the end of World War II and the birth of the United Nations. Examining the development of human rights under international law, the authors introduce the right to health as an encompassing right to health care and underlying determinants of health, exploring this right alongside other “health-related human rights.”

Articulating key obligations of states to persons deprived of liberty under a right to health framework: the Philippine case study

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Lee Edson P. Yarcia ◽  
Jan Michael Alexandre C. Bernadas
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Human Rights ◽  
Right To Health ◽  
The Philippines ◽  
The State ◽  
Policy Reforms ◽  
Physical And Mental Health ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Right

Purpose This paper aims to examine key obligations of states to persons deprived of liberty (PDLs) under the right to health framework in the context of COVID-19. As a case study, it also describes the state of health in places of detention in the Philippines during the pandemic, with an end view of providing granular recommendations for prison policy reforms. Design/methodology/approach Relevant rules under international human rights law related to places of detention were thematically analyzed to articulate the scope of the right to health of PDLs. To describe the state of places of detention in the Philippines, this paper relied on archival research of news from selected local mainstream and specialized media. Findings The right to health framework provides a foundation for the response to COVID-19 in places of detention. Key concerns include increase in the number of infections, vulnerabilities in physical and mental health, and the spread of infection among correctional staff. Long-standing structural constraints and limited health information compound the threat of COVID-19. The Philippines must comply with its human rights obligations to PDLs to effectively address COVID-19-related concerns. Practical implications Policy reforms in Philippine places of detention must include application of community standards on physical and mental health, implementation of emergency release and application of non-custodial measures for long-term prison decongestion. Originality/value This is one of the few papers to analyze human rights in health care in places of detention during a pandemic, as nuanced in the context of the Philippines.

s.One Norms and Principles, 3 The Right to Health and Health-Related Human Rights

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tobin John ◽  
Barrett Damon
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Human Rights ◽  
Right To Health ◽  
Economic Determinants ◽  
Right To Health Care ◽  
Cultural Rights ◽  
Health Goals ◽  
Health Related ◽  
State Obligations ◽  
The Right

This chapter reviews the scope and meaning of the right to health under international law. Drawing on public health discourses and expanding beyond a right to health care, the contours of the right to health have been clarified—to encompass a wide range of social, political, and economic determinants of health—by the United Nations Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (CESCR) in its General Comment 14, by academics in the fields of law and public health, and by national governments in their domestic laws and judicial interpretations. The normative content of the right to health now provides a foundation for state obligations to respect, protect, and fulfill the right to health; limitations on other rights for public health goals; the right’s essential attributes of availability, accessibility, acceptability, and quality; the minimum core obligations of the right to health; and the progressive realization of health-related human rights.

The right to health supports global public health

2021 ◽  
pp. 273-290
Author(s):  
Carmel Williams ◽  
Alison Blaiklock ◽  
Paul Hunt
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Climate Change ◽  
Human Rights ◽  
Public Health Practice ◽  
Right To Health ◽  
Global Public Health ◽  
Health Issues ◽  
Supportive Relationship ◽  
The Right ◽  
Overseas Development

In this chapter, we explain how human rights, including the right to health, are important for global public health. We introduce key human rights concepts and principles, and illustrate three approaches to the right to health: judicial, policy, and empowerment. We propose that human rights and public health are natural allies with a complementary and supportive relationship. We describe the meaning of the right to the highest attainable standard of health and its place in international, regional, and national laws. We outline ten key elements of the right to health and how the right can be operationalized in public health practice. We demonstrate this with two case studies of critically important global public health issues—climate change and children’s health, and overseas development assistance—as well as one of an emerging challenge in health, the digitization of health through Big Data.

The Right to Health and Health-Related Human Rights

2020 ◽  
pp. 67-88
Author(s):  
John Tobin ◽  
Damon Barrett
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Human Rights ◽  
Right To Health ◽  
Economic Determinants ◽  
Right To Health Care ◽  
Cultural Rights ◽  
Health Goals ◽  
Health Related ◽  
State Obligations ◽  
The Right

This chapter reviews the scope and meaning of the right to health under international law. Drawing on public health discourses and expanding beyond a right to health care, the contours of the right to health have been clarified—to encompass a wide range of social, political, and economic determinants of health—by the United Nations Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (CESCR) in its General Comment 14, by academics in the fields of law and public health, and by national governments in their domestic laws and judicial interpretations. The normative content of the right to health now provides a foundation for state obligations to respect, protect, and fulfill the right to health; limitations on other rights for public health goals; the right’s essential attributes of availability, accessibility, acceptability, and quality; the minimum core obligations of the right to health; and the progressive realization of health-related human rights.

s.Two Implementation and Accountability, 8 Justiciability of Human Rights for Health

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Flood Colleen M ◽  
Thomas Bryan
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Human Rights ◽  
Right To Health ◽  
Health And Human Rights ◽  
Proper Role ◽  
Health Related ◽  
State Obligations ◽  
The Right ◽  
The Impact

This chapter examines both the power and limitations of litigation as a means of facilitating accountability for the advancement of public health. While almost half of the world’s constitutions now contain a justiciable right to health, the impact of litigation has been mixed. Judicial accountability has, in some cases, advanced state obligations to realize the highest attainable standard of health, but in other cases, litigation has threatened the solidarity undergirding public health systems. There is significant country-to-country variation in interpreting health-related human rights, as well as differing views of the proper role of courts in interpreting and enforcing these rights. Surveying regional human rights systems and national judicial efforts to address health and human rights, it is necessary to analyze how courts have approached—and how they should approach—litigation of the right to health and health-related human rights to improve health for all.

scholarly journals The United Kingdom’s Coronavirus Act, deprivations of liberty, and the right to liberty and security of the person

2020 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jonathan Pugh
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Human Rights ◽  
European Convention ◽  
Human Rights Law ◽  
Legal Certainty ◽  
The Public ◽  
European Court ◽  
The Uk ◽  
The Right ◽  
Article 5

Abstract In response to the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus pandemic the UK government has passed the Coronavirus Act 2020 (CA). Among other things, this act extends existing statutory powers to impose restrictions of liberty for public health purposes. The extension of such powers naturally raises concerns about whether their use will be compatible with human rights law. In particular, it is unclear whether their use will fall within the public heath exception to the Article 5 right to liberty and security of the person in the European Convention of Human Rights. In this paper, I outline key features of the CA, and briefly consider how the European Court of Human Rights has interpreted the public health exception to Article 5 rights. This analysis suggests two grounds on which restrictions of liberty enforced some under the CA might be vulnerable to claims of Article 5 rights violations. First, the absence of specified time limits on certain restrictions of liberty means that they may fail the requirement of legal certainty championed by the European Court in its interpretation of the public health exception. Second, the Coronavirus Act’s extension of powers to individuals lacking public health expertise may undermine the extent to which the act will ensure that deprivations of liberty are necessary and proportionate.

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