MONITORING PLACES OF DETENTION : A PRACTICAL GUIDE 71 mechanism fears that reprisals might be taken against the detainees who talked to them, it is important to carry out a follow-up visit without delay and to meet the same detainees visited previously. 2.5 The visiting team 2.5.1 Composition To monitor conditions of detention certain professional skills are needed in particular in the fields of law and public health. The visiting team should ideally contain at least one person with a legal background and one with a medical background, preferably a doctor. The presence in the team of a medical doctor is especially important when there are problems of torture and ill-treatment. It also facilitates contacts with the medical personnel of the place who can share experiences while respecting medical confidentiality. Other professionals can also be very useful – for instance, educationalists, psychologists, engineers. Apart from professional skills, personal skills are essential, in particular the capacity to interact with people in a sensitive manner that is respectful of their human dignity. Experience has shown that it is a strong advantage to have a balance between male and female members in a visiting team. In most cultures, men and women have different opportunities to establish relationships based on trust with detainees and staff. Detainees and staff will prefer to talk to either a man or a woman, depending on the specific issue. In contexts dominated by a male culture, detainees may have less fear of losing face in front of a female visitor. A genderbalanced team will therefore increase the possibility of getting a full picture of the conditions of detention. In places of detention where persons from different ethnic or regional backgrounds are held, it is a strong advantage for a visiting body to reflect those groups and regions in the composition of their team. Language skills are a further point to be taken into consideration.