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Frances Ames

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South African physician

South AfricaLived 1920 to 2002 · aged 82
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Fame48.5
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Languages18
In century#91,564

Frances Rix Ames was a South African neurologist, psychiatrist, and human rights activist, best known for leading the medical ethics inquiry into the death of anti-apartheid activist Steve Biko, who died from medical neglect after being tortured in police custody.

Also inDeutsch

Awards 1

Order of the Star of South Africa

About this person

Frances Rix Ames was a South African neurologist, psychiatrist, and human rights activist, best known for leading the medical ethics inquiry into the death of anti-apartheid activist Steve Biko, who died from medical neglect after being tortured in police custody. When the South African Medical and Dental Council (SAMDC) declined to discipline the chief district surgeon and his assistant who treated Biko, Ames and a group of five academics and physicians raised funds and fought an eight-year legal battle against the medical establishment. Ames risked her personal safety and academic career in her pursuit of justice, taking the dispute to the South African Supreme Court, where she eventually won the case in 1985.

Country
South Africa
Status
deceased
Dates
Lived 1920 to 2002 · aged 82
Written about in
18 languages

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