Health Professionals'
Pledge Against Torture

Recent political dialogue in the United States has included open discussion of a return to waterboarding – and “worse.” This unacceptable threat to human rights demands action from everyone, especially those committed to “do no harm.” It is a critical moment for health professionals to speak out against torture.

Torture and other ill-treatment are illegal under international and domestic law. They are further prohibited under our codes of ethics, because they breach the most fundamental tenet that health professionals commit themselves to uphold: do no harm.

As health professionals, we use our scientific and professional knowledge and skills to serve humanity. Yet torture degrades the health and dignity of human beings and damages not only victims, their families, and their communities, but also perpetrators, institutions, and society itself.

In addition, as professionals guided by the best available evidence, we note that torture has been proven an ineffective means of interrogation. Using torture generates flawed intelligence and contradicts the best practices of interrogation experts.

Throughout history, members of our professions have been enlisted by governments to legitimize and sanction the use of torture. Most recently, after 9/11, American health professionals helped design and implement the systematic torture and abuse of national security detainees.

With the looming threat of a return to torture as official U.S. policy, health professionals must form a critical line of defense. We must stand together and affirm that torture is illegal, unethical, immoral, and harmful. Now, more than ever, we must put the U.S. government on notice that we are committed to the legal and ethical responsibilities of our professions.

Lead Signers

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• Peter Agre, M.D., Maryland
  Bloomberg Distinguished Professor and Director,
  Johns Hopkins Malaria Research Institute
  Nobel Laureate in Medicine
• Scott A. Allen, M.D., California
  Medical Advisor, Physicians for Human Rights
  Professor of Clinical Medicine
  University of California Riverside School of Medicine
• Eden Almasude, M.D. Candidate, Minnesota
  PHR Student Advisory Board
  University of Minnesota Medical School
• M. Gregg Bloche, M.D., JD, District of Columbia
  Professor of Law, Georgetown University
  
• Diane Bruessow, PA-C, DFAAPA, New York
  Director at Large, American Academy of Physicians Assistants
• Donald S. Burke, M.D., Pennsylvania
  Associate Vice Chancellor for Global Health
  Dean, Graduate School of Public Health, University of Pittsburgh
• Arthur L. Caplan, PhD, New York
  Professor and Director, Division of Medical Ethics
  NYU School of Medicine
• Pamela F. Cipriano, PhD, RN, NEA-BC, FAAN, Maryland
  President, American Nurses Association
• Robert L. Cohen, M.D., New York
  Member, New York City Board of Correction
• Joyce J. Fitzpatrick, PhD, MBA, RN, FAAN, Ohio
  Professor of Nursing, Case Western Reserve University
  
• Vincent Iacopino, M.D., PhD, Nevada
  Senior Medical Advisor
  Physicians for Human Rights
• Faraz Khan, M.D. Candidate, New York
  PHR Student Advisory Board
  Albany Medical College
• Michael J. Klag, MD, MPH, Maryland
  Dean, John Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health
  
• Robert S. Lawrence, M.D., MACP, Maryland
  Founding Member, Board Member Emeritus, and Past Board Chair,
  Physicians for Human Rights
  Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health
• Mark A. Levine, M.D., Colorado
  Clinical Professor of Medicine, University of Colorado
  Past Chair, AMA Council on Ethical and Judicial Affairs
• Robert Jay Lifton, M.D., New York
  Lecturer in Psychiatry, Columbia University
  Distinguished Professor Emeritus, The City University of New York
• Boris D. Lushniak, M.D., MPH, Maryland
  Dean and Professor, School of Public Health, University of Maryland
  Former Surgeon General of the United States
• Elena O. Nightingale, M.D., PhD, District of Columbia
  Member and Scholar-In-Residence Emerita
  The National Academy of Medicine
• Nizam Peerwani, M.D., Texas
  Chief Medical Examiner, Fort Worth, Tarrant County, Texas
  Forensic Consultant, Physicians for Human Rights
• Steven J. Reisner, PhD, New York
  Psychological Ethics Advisor, Physicians for Human Rights
  Founding Member, Coalition for an Ethical Psychology
• Josiah D. Rich, M.D., MPH, Rhode Island
  Professor of Medicine and Epidemiology, Brown University
  Director of the Center for Prisoner Health and Human Rights
  The Miriam Hospital
• Linda Rosenstock, M.D., MPH, California
  Dean Emeritus and Professor, UCLA Fielding School of Public Health
• David Satcher, M.D., PhD, Georgia
  Morehouse School of Medicine
  Former Surgeon General of the United States
• Stephen Soldz, PhD, Massachusetts
  Anti-Torture Advisor, Physicians for Human Rights
  Director, Social Justice and Human Rights
  Boston Graduate School of Psychoanalysis
• Kerry J. Sulkowicz, M.D., New York
  Chair, Board of Directors, Physicians for Human Rights
• Homer Venters, M.D., MS, New York
  Director of Programs, Physicians for Human Rights
• Ronald Waldman, M.D., MPH, District of Columbia
  Professor of Global Health, Milken Institute School of
  Public Health, George Washington University
• Marla J. Weston, PhD, RN, FAAN, Maryland
  Chief Executive Officer, American Nurses Association Enterprise
• Matthew K. Wynia, M.D., Colorado
  Director, Center for Bioethics and Humanities,
  University of Colorado
• Brigadier General (Retired) Stephen N. Xenakis, M.D., Maryland
  Former Erik Erikson Scholar
  The Austen Riggs Center
  Adjunct Professor, The Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences
  
  

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