Even if you are unable to give consent, you have the right to medical treatment, education and other benefits, and may not have these benefits denied due to religious or other beliefs.

Theresa is a 15-year-old girl living on the street in Accra. Because her family was not able to support her she was forced to drop out of school and leave her home in the North to find work. A few months after arriving in the city, she was impregnated by another street child and now has to also take care of her baby in addition to working long hours. While she works she has a nanny take care of her baby along with 20 other babies. The babies sit in their own defecation in a dark room without access to clean drinking water. Because of these living conditions, her baby frequently has diarrheal infections. Theresa cannot afford the treatment for her baby so the baby’s condition is increasingly growing worse.  In this case, Theresa’s right to medical treatment and other benefits is not being realized. Theresa should be able to attend school and receive a proper education. As well Theresa’s baby has the right to receive medical treatment even if Theresa cannot afford it. Everyone has the right to live in dignity and the conditions that Theresa’s baby is being forced to live in are inhumane.