A Tragedy On All Sides

By now I'm sure that most everyone in the world has heard that the conviction and death sentence of the five Bulgarian nurses and Palestinian doctor accused of purposely infecting over 400 children within Libya was upheld on December 19th. It's a case that has drawn much international attention, from those of us in Europe and the United States that are condemning the action, and those in Libya, some of whom are probably ready to pull the trigger of the weapons of the firing squad themselves. Regardless of where we're from, I think we can all agree on one major thing-- this is a case where tragedy abounds on all sides.

I cannot (and will not) criticize the legal system of another country, since I do not fully know what laws and bylaws and infrastructure comprises it. According to the CIA World Factbook (https://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/geos/ly.html), Libyan law is based on Italian civil law, and sharia (Islamic law). I will say that the evidence presented to convict these six people was circumstantial at best by Western legal standards, and at worse, six people may be executed for a crime that they didn't commit. In defense, I ask a few simple questions, of Libyans, of the authorities involved. Are the blood collection standards in your country up to the same standard that they are in the West, especially prior to 1984, when the same conditions existed in the US and many people were unintentionally infected with the AIDS virus? Is there any testing done to blood supplies before they are used, to ensure that they are disease free? Are needles ever reused, even on the same patient (here, one poke and the "sharp" is thrown away)? How sanitary are the conditions in Libyan hospitals-- for example, if one patient bleeds onto a surface, is that surface then completely sanitized before being used again? And lastly, how long has the disease been present within the children? This last question is probably most important as to the guilt of the six. Testing by outside authorities in France proved at one point that the advancement of the disease in the children was far beyond when the nurses and doctors could have possibly infected them. In other words, these children already HAD the disease when the six arrived in Libya to treat the children. I'll offer one last defense, more personal. I may be accused of being a bleeding heart, of supplanting my own emotions in place of fact to come to this conclusion, but as a soon-to-be nursing student (gotta get PAST the prereq's first-- will start the program this coming fall), I don't see how anyone, however cold and callous, and especially in a profession dedicated to HELPING people (which is in fact what the nurses came from Bulgaria to do, help Libyan children suffering from disease) could ever knowingly infect someone with a virus that they know will kill, that has no cure, that causes a horrible death. Very few people have no conscience and would do such a heinous thing.

I had hoped, once I finish my degrees and certifications-- at earliest, March of 2010, and probably later than that, since I plan to go for a bachelor's degree in Nursing (and later a Master's, and then eventually, a doctorate in health care administration, because ALL nurses secretly harbor a desire to run the hospital, LOL!)-- to be a nurse at a Libyan hospital. Frankly, I don't see the climate as welcoming now as I once did. Yes, I could definitely learn a lot, which would strengthen my career and broaden my viewpoints, although I must admit to a certain amount of fear, too. What if the standards in place within Libya are not "Western" in design, and through a gross mistake not of my own doing someone is infected with this or another lethal disease? Will I also face a death sentence, imprisonment, and false accusations? However, I cannot let fear rule my life or prevent me from doing things that I wish to do, that I feel compelled to do. What is to come is all in God's hands, and I must safely leave it there, though the idea of blind faith is something I struggle with at times (I think we all do).

This case is very sad, and one where NOBODY comes out smelling like a rose. The children will still die, since there is no cure for HIV/AIDS. Yes, we may be able to prolong their lives through the use of antiviral drugs, some of which are very effective, although these drugs are also very expensive. I call on US and European AIDS organizations to donate a sufficient quantity of these meds to the Libyan government, for the express purpose of treating these patients and others within the country that are infected with the same virus. We don't have to let these turn into a game of blame, pointing fingers and ultimately, DEATH. We can still try to make something (however small) positive come of this tragedy. Show that the children's lives, regardless of whomever infected them or when it was done, are valuable and precious to us, as citizens of the world. The families of the children have asked for $10 million compensation. I don't know who should pay them this or even if money should be paid, but I certainly think that ALL of the medical care for the children should be subsidized, that the best treatment options that exist IN THE WEST be given to them, and that a group of entities (NGO's, governments, etc.) should come together to provide this. The children deserve nothing less; they will not likely live to have the same opportunities that the rest of us do. Who knows what the children would have accomplished-- one of them may have even found a cure to the very disease that will now quell their life. At the very least, we owe these littlest of victims this, and much more.