Council warns nurses against sharing victims’ pictures
The Nurses and Midwives Council of Malawi (NMCM) has warned its members that they risk deregistration if found taking or sharing pictures of victims at accident scenes or in hospitals without consent.
The council has appealed to health workers to treat victims with respect and dignity as they learn during training.
In a statement published in yesterday’s edition of The Nation, the council expressed concern that there are some people, including nurses and midwives, who take pictures of victims at accident scenes and in hospitals which they share on social media.
“The NMCM would like to make a plea to the public, more especially its practising nurses and midwives, to refrain from taking part in these malpractices.
“This is morally, ethically and professionally wrong, besides causing more psychological trauma to the relatives of the concerned victims,” reads part of the statement signed by NMCM registrar and chief executive officer Isabella Msolomba-Musisi.
The council could not be drawn into commenting on whether there are specific cases involving its membership.
However, in the recent past, people have embraced the behaviour of sharing pictures of dead or injured people as well as people receiving treatment in hospitals on the social media, especially on Facebook and WhatsApp. n
