Values
Swiss Doctors is a private, non-profit, politically and confessionally independent aid organisation:
- Our work is a testimony to the value and dignity of the individual.
- Our work is a testimony to solidarity with people.
- We respect the culture and religion of the people. The people who seek our help should receive the best possible medical support from us.
- We are politically neutral.
Goals
Swiss Doctors sends doctors to projects, primarily to countries in the ‘Global South’. The projects are supported by two to eight doctors at each location, dentists are also deployed in the Philippines on the islands Luzon and Mindoro.
Swiss Doctors follows the guidelines of the World Health Organisation's (WHO) definition of health, which defines health as a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being. We want to improve basic medical care and are committed to the prevention of diseases. We work to fight poverty-related diseases such as tuberculosis and tropical diseases such as malaria. Swiss Doctors understands health in a holistic way and tries to strengthen health through education. We also provide specialised pharmaceutical and medical advice, for example in the quality control of medical products.
Swiss Doctors works with local partner organisations so that our work is embedded in the grassroots structures. Thus, we can rely on our established network of committed partners.
Our partners and local employees are our link to the patients, as they speak their language and - often also coming from humble backgrounds - know their living conditions and culture well. We see the training of our employees as a contribution to the development in our countries of operation. Partnership with patients is also an important value for Swiss Doctors. This is why the doctors live in their patients' neighborhoods during their deployment.