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SwitzerlandIn January 2006, MSF launched the “Meditrina” project for people living in Zurich. Free consultations are provided for all people of Swiss or other origin who are neither medically insured nor in possession of the necessary financial means to pay for medical consultations and treatment. By July 2007, approximately 60 consultations were being provided monthly. Many of the people who come to the center are foreign nationals living in unstable circumstances and unable to obtain medical care through the Swiss healthcare system. The rise in patient attendance is attributed to the integration of six community “mediators” of various nationalities into the social fabric of migrants living and working in Zurich. These mediators have taken on the role of informing the different communities of the existence of this free service. The Meditrina service now offers HIV counseling and voluntary screening. As with the detection of other medical conditions requiring more specialized treatment, patients may be directed toward other local medical facilities after their initial examination. Meditrina works with a network of national doctors, chemists, hospitals and laboratories to facilitate such referrals. MSF has worked in Switzerland since 2003. |
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