The Pope met today with the representatives of the National Federation of Orders of Tsrm-Pstrp. “A world that rejects the sick, that does not help those who cannot afford treatment, is a cynical world and has no future,” he said, urging professionals “to always take ethical values as the indispensable reference for their professions.” regard. In fact, values, when well received and combined with scientific knowledge and the necessary skills, make it possible to accompany the people entrusted to you in the best possible way.”
JAN 16 – “Health is not a luxury! A world that discards the sick, that doesn’t help those who can’t afford treatment, is a cynical world and has no future.” Stuff like that Pope Francis during today’s hearing with the representatives of the National Federation of Orders of Medical Radiologists and Technical Health, Rehabilitation and Prevention Professions.
“I urge you to always consider ethical values entrusted to you as an indispensable reference for your professions,” added the Pope.
“But you too, health professionals – Bergoglio said – are human beings and you need someone to look after you, by recognizing your services, protecting decent working conditions and involving an appropriate number of carers, the right to health is becoming a priority for everyone accepted”.
Below is the full text of the Pope’s address to the National Federation of Orders of Medical Radiology Health Technicians and Technical Health, Rehabilitation and Prevention Professions,
Dear brothers and sisters, good morning and welcome!
I thank the President for her words of welcome. You represent thousands of health professionals: this meeting is therefore an opportunity for me to renew my closeness and gratitude for what you do every day. I want to thank you for your commitment and dedication, especially when it’s hidden. Healthcare professionals have had a very special, almost unimaginable experience over the past three years, that of the pandemic. It has been said on other occasions, but it must not be forgotten: without your dedication and hard work, many sick people would not have been treated. A sense of duty inspired by the power of love has enabled you to carry out your work in the service of others, even if you risk your own health. And with you, I thank all the other healthcare workers.
In less than a month, February 11th is World Day of the Sick, which also encourages reflection on experiencing illness. This is all the more appropriate today, even necessary, because the culture of efficiency and waste often pushes us to deny it. There is no room for fragility. And so the evil when it breaks in and attacks us leaves us stunned on the ground. So it can happen that others leave us or that we feel that we have to leave them in order not to feel like a burden to them. This is how loneliness begins.” (Message for the XXXI World Day of the Sick).
Conversely, the culture of caring embodied in the Good Samaritan (cf. Lk 10:25-37). He doesn’t look away, he approaches the injured with compassion and cares for the person others have ignored. This parable shows a precise behavior. «It shows us the initiatives that can be used to reshape a community, starting from men and women who embrace the fragility of others, who do not allow a society of exclusion to be built, but who become neighbors and raise fallen people and rehabilitate, because the good are mean” (Encyclical All Brothers, 67).
Dear friends, your profession arises from a selection of values. With your service, you help to “educate and rehabilitate” your customers by reminding them that they are human first. Rather, the human being must always be at the center, in all its components, including the spiritual: a unified whole in which the biological and spiritual, cultural and relational, planning and environmental dimensions of the human being in the life course are harmonized. This principle, underlying the ethical constitution of your association, guides the way and allows not to succumb to sterile efficiency or the cold application of protocols. Sick people are people asking to be treated and cared for, and for this reason it is important to treat them with humanity and empathy. Certainly at a high professional level, but with humanity and empathy.
But you too, healthcare professionals, are human beings and you need someone to look after you, by recognizing your achievement, protecting decent working conditions and involving an adequate number of carers so that the right to health is recognized for all . It is up to each country to work to “find policies and resources to ensure everyone has access to treatment and the fundamental right to health” (Message for the XXXI World Day of the Sick). Health is not a luxury! A world that discards the sick, that does not help those who cannot afford treatment, is a cynical world and has no future. Let’s always remember: health is not a luxury, it is for everyone.
I challenge you to always consider ethical values as an indispensable reference for your professions. Because values, well internalized and combined with scientific knowledge and the necessary skills, make it possible to accompany the people entrusted to you in the best possible way.
Dear brothers and sisters, may the motherly intercession of the Virgin Mary accompany you, who in the Gospel presents us as a caring woman who hastens to help her relative Elizabeth. Take care of yourself and your work. My heartfelt blessings to you and your families. And I ask you to pray for me. Thank you!
January 16, 2023
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