Faculty and residents from the Department of Anesthesiology joined the Weill Cornell Center for Human Rights (WCCHR) for a training session to help refugees.
The training, held September 10, gave physicians the skills to medically evaluate victims of torture who are seeking asylum in the United States, and to prepare medical affidavits to document their findings.
"It's a pretty unique opportunity," said Dr. Gunisha Kaur, instructor in anesthesiology and head of the department's Global Health Initiative. "The Human Rights clinic has a lot of refugees who need help in documenting torture. There aren't enough physicians who are trained and able to provide that service."
Department members who volunteered their time to receive the training are Drs. Zahra Malik, Christine Lennon, Eric Brumberger, Sheida Tabaie, Melanie Witte, Gunisha Kaur and Harmandeep Singh. Research Assistant Andrew del Re also participated.
WCCHR was founded in 2010 through a partnership with Physicians for Human Rights. It is a medical student-run human rights clinic that provides forensic medical evaluations to survivors of torture who are seeking asylum in the U.S.
RELATED INFORMATION