Should Health Professionals Allow Reporters Inside Hospitals and Clinics at Times of Natural Disasters?

0471 The tsunami that marked a solemn end to 2004 left behind unprecedented devastation. The world was shocked at the increasing casualty fi gures and the real-time images of the disaster brought by the news media. These included clips and photographs of dead bodies, grieving relatives, and suffering patients admitted to makeshift emergency wards. The photographs did help in organizing a quick response from the rest of the world, as societal pressure led governments and relief agencies to respond with comprehensive relief measures. Graphic footage and newspaper headlines continue to dwell on this human tragedy. However, both health-care workers and journalists need to carefully consider whether it is ethical to show images of patients in obvious distress and undergoing medical attention in emergency camps, or of dead bodies in hospital morgues.