Doctors Without Borders

Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) is an international medical humanitarian organization created by doctors and journalists in France in 1971. In 1999, the organization received the Nobel Peace Prize.

Today, MSF provides independent, impartial assistance in more than 60 countries to people whose survival is threatened by violence, neglect, or catastrophe, primarily due to armed conflict, epidemics, malnutrition, exclusion from health care, or natural disasters. MSF gives assistance to those most in need. MSF also calls attention to neglected crises, challenges inadequacies or abuse of the aid system, and defends improved medical treatments and protocols.

Humanitarian Action

MSF's work is based on the humanitarian principles of medical ethics and impartiality. The organization is dedicated to giving quality medical care to people in crises not considering race, religion, or political affiliation.

MSF operates independently of any political, military, or religious views. Medical teams conduct evaluations to determine a population's medical needs before opening programs, with the objective of answering problems that exist (instead of duplicating services that are already offered) or reach communities that are not being assisted. The key to MSF’s ability to act independently in response to a crisis is its independent funding. Ninety percent of MSF's overall funding (and 100 percent of MSF-USA's funding) comes from private, non-governmental sources. In 2009, MSF had 3.8 million individual donors and private funders all over the world. As a consequence, MSF is a neutral organization. It does not take sides in any armed conflicts, for example.

Internet: <www.doctorswithoutborders.org> (adapted).