Physicians for Human Rights

Physicians for Human Rights was founded in 1986 on the idea that health professionals, with their specialized skills, ethical duties, and credible voices, are uniquely positioned to investigate the health consequences of human rights violations and work to stop them. We are headquartered in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and maintain an office in Washington, DC. We are a non-profit, non-sectarian organization funded through private foundations and by individual donors. Membership is open to all, not just health professionals. PHR shared the 1997 Nobel Peace Prize.

Our Mission

Physicians for Human Rights mobilizes health professionals to advance health, dignity and justice, and promotes the right to health for all. Harnessing the specialized skills, rigor, and passion of doctors, nurses, public health specialists and scientists, PHR investigates human rights abuses and works to stop them.

Our research takes us to conflict zones, to AIDS-ravaged Africa, to US prisons and immigration detention centers - and our advocacy brings us to the offices of national and international policymakers. The courts, decision makers and the media have come to rely on our credibility and expertise. Motivated by moral urgency, based on science, and anchored in international human rights standards, PHR's advocacy advances global health and protects human rights.

PHR is building a new movement for human rights based on the solid foundation of over two decades of investigation, advocacy and accomplishment.

physiciansforhumanrights.org