Puerto Rico Under Haiti's scandal

Although Puerto Rico is a small island, a scandal involving the territory has made headlines worldwide.

Puerto Rican doctors traveled to Haiti to help victims of the earthquake. Very controversial Facebook photos soon surfaced. Doctors drinking, holding firearms, smiling while working on patients, among other things, circulated the internet and made the front page of several newspapers.

Puerto Rico's most popular newspaper, El Nuevo Dia, wrote, "The doctors could be suspended and even lose their licenses," because of their behavior in Haiti.

Many are outraged and indignant toward the doctors involved. Others stand firm and say the photos do not overshadow their good deeds. Enid Garcia, one of the accompanying doctors from the first group stated: "What they did during their time of leisure is their responsibility..." She then concluded that their work in Haiti was excellent and they saved many lives.

Doctor Vincent Bonilla, who is 28 years old and a recent graduate from medical school, stated his naivety caused him to act immaturely and tainted the image of his colleagues.

Must we condone such immature actions? I don't think we should. Must we obliterate the work they performed because of this scandal? Again, I don't think we should.

Public humilliation and global embarrassment is punishment enough.

Then again, "no good deed goes unpunished."

What do you think?

 

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Comments

[toponer]

01:41 PM on 02/23/2010

I don't think that there should be any punishment for these doctors, that were there trying to help people in need. They are free to do what they please in their own time, and the last time that i checked, drinking on your own time is not a crime.
I have to admit, that as a fellow Boriqua, I am a little bias. However, this doesn't change what I believe. I defended the American missionaries that were there also trying to help people, so race to me doesn't really blur what I believe to be right. I think that people tent to blow things out of proportion, at least I think that they do.

[dracta]

11:30 AM on 02/08/2010

Haiti currently it is not a place that should be considered a party spot, if you are there, you should be there to work, pictures are often taken in certain situations and catastrophes, but not like this, if this was yourself or your family and someone was taking pictures while smiling, drinking and/or putting a saw to your leg in anticipation of amputation and you are in pain, bleeding, broken and homeless, I would not be happy!! Posting them on facebook was the reason we found out about the pictures, as we often ask our children "are you sorry you did it or sorry you got cought?". We must always remember what pain, suffering and desperation feels like, the love of humanity and compassion for pain and despair should be the reason we love doing what we do. does this take away the work they did? to me it does in some way, when you give a hungry person some food you do it on a clean plate and with a certain level of decency, throwing it on a trash can lid just because you are giving a hungry person food is not right. seems to me, the people that posed in the pictures are connected in some way to the people that took the pictures! In one way or another they are responsible for the publication, However, revoking their medical licenses would be extreme but I do believe they should be severely sanctioned for their actions.

[Limari Colon]

09:23 PM on 02/02/2010

My father said the same thing about the "cheese" factor! Let me know if you find out more details. Thanks for reading guys. Have a great week!

[drjasonmd]

08:02 PM on 02/02/2010

I'm curious to see who's going to prosecute them. These doctors were in the Dominican Republic, so Puerto Rico certainly has no jurisdiction nor does any of their medical boards. They do have the power to subpoena Facebook to find out who posted those pictures since they clearly are a HIPAA violation (which Puerto Rico, as a U.S. protectorate, is subject to).

[Ricardo Aviles]

07:07 PM on 02/02/2010

The doctors forgot that you don't have to smile every time you see a camera. This is the biggest fault I can find in these pictures. Remember, don't say "cheese" if the situation does not merit it! What should count here is the work they performed, period.

[drjasonmd]

08:53 PM on 02/01/2010

I didn't see anything in the photos worth all this fuss. If anything, I'd be more angry at the person who decided to publish them on the internet than the doctors who were there taking them. Photos are taken all the time in medical situations, especially in a disaster situation. However, the violation is not taking the photos, it's publishing them in a public forum like Facebook. Patients have a right to confidentiality, even in a disaster situation.

As for the firearms and drinking, what people do on their off time is their own business. Like I tell people all the time, I'm a physician, not a priest. If anything, those soldiers are going to be in a lot of trouble for surrendering their weapons to civilians. As a former Marine, I can tell you that is a big no-no, punishable even by imprisonment.

[Limari Colon]

11:24 AM on 02/02/2010

Thank you so much for answering drjasonmd! I share your thoughts.
An interesting update: the soldiers were arrested. We just have to wait for the verdict on the young doctors. Greetings from the Caribbean!