Re: Strategic Action Plan - Human Trafficking Victim Services
The Christian Medical Association (CMA) agrees with the four
overall goals of the Federal Strategic Action Plan on Services for Victims of
Human Trafficking in the United States, 2013-2017 and applauds this
comprehensive effort. Fighting human trafficking within the United States
hinges on increased coordination and collaboration within all affected federal
agencies as well as with nongovernmental organizations, including faith-based
NGOs.
Studies suggest that a significant percentage of victims of human trafficking will visit healthcare
professionals, yet virtually none is
reported as a result. Several federal agencies, recognizing this gap, have
produced general guidelines for health professionals.
However, existing government materials in this area are not
adequate to fully engage health professionals in the ways that physicians,
nurses and other medical professionals are used to obtaining education--which
is through medical institutions, organizations and specialty colleges (e.g., American
Medical Association, American Academy of Emergency Physicians, American College
of Physicians, Christian Medical Association, etc.).
For this reason, CMA members with extensive experience in
human trafficking projects have been raising awareness of the issue of human
trafficking among healthcare professionals. Besides conducting medical missions, which provides our
members with first-hand experience treating
victims, CMA has also produced comprehensive
online education modules that carry Continuing Medical Education (CME)
Category One credit. These training resources (www.CMDA.org/tip) are
helping healthcare professionals (a) to grasp and understand the causes and effects
of human trafficking and (b) to identify victims of human trafficking within
the healthcare setting. CMA's courses provide an example of how hundreds of
thousands of health professionals can be reached through medical specialty
colleges and organizations.
CMA agrees with the Plan's goal to improve short and long
term health outcomes of victims of human trafficking and also supports the goal
of expanding access to services, recognizing that there is a dearth of
specialized services required by victims of human trafficking. Through medical
missions to trafficking victims and online training resources, CMA has been
mobilizing 16,000 members to recognize, report and provide necessary medical
and dental services to these traumatized victims.
Recommendations
1. Federal
agencies tasked with developing awareness raising resources should make use of
existing resources, such as those offered by CMA, for the healthcare community.
Agencies such as ACF can greatly increase awareness by disseminating such
resources widely to the healthcare community and offering them as templates
for additional resources.
2. To
assist in meeting Objective 6 outlined in the Plan, with minimal funding CMA
would be able to establish a nationwide "train the trainers"
program that would prepare, equip and train healthcare professionals from
across the United States who would in turn train healthcare professionals in
their community to identify victims of human trafficking.
3. Engaging
medical specialty colleges provides an opportunity to reach hundreds of
thousands of medical professionals, most of whom belong to and rely on medical
specialty colleges for education. Hold a one-day White House human
trafficking conference for leaders of national medical specialty colleges and
other key medical organizations. Review existing resources and data,
demonstrating how medical organizations themselves can raise awareness among
and mobilize their members by providing educational resources similar to those
produced by CMA.
Thank you for your consideration of these views, and for your
initiative and commitment to eradicating human trafficking. We would be happy
to discuss any of the recommendations further with appropriate officials.
Sincerely,
Jeffrey J. Barrows, D.O., M.A. (Bioethics)
Health Consultant, Human Trafficking
Christian Medical Association
Jonathan Imbody
Vice President for Government Relations
Christian Medical Association
Director, Freedom2Care
