A broken system

There are currently two people on Nauru, Khan and Nawaf, who require urgent medical treatment. This treatment is not available or appropriate on Nauru and Khan and Nawaf are in urgent need to be transferred out of Nauru to access the medical treatment and specialist services that they need.

A Senior IHMS Medical Officer on Nauru has admitted that the system is broken.

No matter who you are, everyone has the right to be safe and receive the appropriate level of care. This includes Nawaf and Khan.

Listen and read more about the situation facing Nawaf and Khan here and here.

Minister Dutton has the power to make this happen now. Contact Minister Dutton and tell him you support the urgent call to transfer Nawaf and Khan from Nauru to access appropriate medical care.

• Email: minister@border.gov.au
• Telephone: 02 6277 7860

Khan

Khan is an Afghani man in his late 20s with refugee status. He lives in the community on Nauru. Since early 2016, he has suffered from semi-regular episodes involving a sharp headache and then falling unconscious. By June 2016 this had happened ten times, and it continues to occur. He has had two CT scans, which have not found the problem. He has been repeatedly told by doctors that he needs an MRI and a neurologist to diagnose the issue, along with cardiac testing due to concerns about other issues he is presenting with. It is not possible to do an MRI on Nauru and there is no neurologist. IHMS doctors have been repeatedly recommending that he is transferred out of Nauru for these tests since late 2016, and have recorded in his medical records that it is ‘disturbing’ that they have not occurred yet. Khan is very scared about his health issue – fainting when alone could be dangerous, and he is terrified that he has a serious medical issue that could result in death, and he doesn’t know it. Khan isn’t asking for much – he just wants medical treatment.

Nawaf
Nawaf is a refugee man in his late 20s who resides at Fly Camp. Fly Camp is a refugee settlement on Nauru, where 120 men live closely together, with an outdoor kitchen and shared bathroom facilities. For the last two and a half years, Nawaf has suffered from a severe, extremely painful, humiliating and uncomfortable condition which for him results in ongoing bleeding . When he was in the RPC, before obtaining refugee status, Nawaf was told that he would be transferred off Nauru to more advanced medical facilities to have the surgery required. Since he moved to Fly Camp, he has been told that he must have the surgery on Nauru. The surgery involves a long recovery period with an open wound which needs careful care and hygiene, which is not possible in a living space with so many men sharing bathrooms. Further, we have obtained independent medical advice from doctors and a specialist surgeon, who have advised that the surgery is delicate, may involve more than one operation, and that if not done properly and after careful diagnosis, can result in permanent incontinence. Nawaf, for these reasons, is terrified of having the surgery on Nauru. Nawaf should be transferred out of Nauru to access the medical treatment and specialist care he needs, and the opportunity to recover in a clean environment.

Medical professionals have recommended that Khan and Nawaf are transferred off to Nauru for medical treatment. Australia established and paid for the centre on Nauru. It is our responsibility to ensure that people seeking asylum and refugees have access to safe, appropriate medical care.

Contact Minister Dutton and tell him you support the urgent call to transfer Nawaf and Khan from Nauru to access appropriate medical care.

Email: minister@border.gov.au
Telephone: 02 6277 7860