Guiding principles
Humanitarian principles
Our medical and humanitarian aid is provided regardless of national, religious or political origin. We reject any form of discrimination. All operations, treatments and therapies in the project countries are free of charge for patients and their families.
Commitment
All of the employees we send to the project countries work on a voluntary basis. They travel during their annual leave, their free time or in their retirement, sometimes accepting the most difficult conditions.
Respect
We respect and value the special needs, traditions and values of the people in the target country and are committed to partnership-based and participatory cooperation. We are convinced that development cooperation only works if you enter into an equal relationship with the local people, be they patients or project partners. We develop our programmes and standards in dialogue with our local colleagues.
Helping people to help themselves
By training and educating local professionals and providing medical infrastructure, we create sustainable systems that function and are successful even without us. We support the skills and initiatives of local people so that external help becomes superfluous in the long term. We involve people in all decisions and measures from the outset and thus create viable, locally customised solutions.
Together
We focus on the essentials, namely the immediate needs of people in need. We work without major bureaucratic routines and streamline our processes as much as possible. Our hierarchies are flat, whether on site in the projects or in the administration of our organisation. Our way of working is open and cooperative and is based on mutual trust and respect. With a good mix of personal responsibility and team spirit, we are able to tackle major challenges.