Ethics in the Worst of Times: Rationing to Protect the Public's Health during a Severe Influenza Pandemic
<!--BEGIN COLUMN 0 --> This event took place on June 5, 2008.
Who should be first to receive scarce health-related resources in a severe pandemic? How should scarce resources like antivirals, masks, vaccines, and ventilators be rationed? How will you communicate a public health perspective to your community, supporting rationing strategies to further our common good? How will you educate them and enlist their support of a state-wide plan to ration these resources in ways intended to save the most lives, preserve public safety and order, and be fair?
Ethicists in Minnesota have worked with state and local public health agencies and a diverse community panel to develop an ethical framework to guide the Minnesota Department of Health's decisions in the midst of a severe pandemic, for the statewide rationing of a range of critical health-related resources for prevention, treatment and personal protection.
In this session, they will present their ethical framework, consisting of principles, goals, and strategies. They will engage you in the vexing ethical issues associated with deciding which groups should be prioritized to receive these vital resources when everyone is, in varying ways and to varying extents, at risk.
<!--BEGIN COLUMN 0 --> This event took place on June 5, 2008.
Who should be first to receive scarce health-related resources in a severe pandemic? How should scarce resources like antivirals, masks, vaccines, and ventilators be rationed? How will you communicate a public health perspective to your community, supporting rationing strategies to further our common good? How will you educate them and enlist their support of a state-wide plan to ration these resources in ways intended to save the most lives, preserve public safety and order, and be fair?
Ethicists in Minnesota have worked with state and local public health agencies and a diverse community panel to develop an ethical framework to guide the Minnesota Department of Health's decisions in the midst of a severe pandemic, for the statewide rationing of a range of critical health-related resources for prevention, treatment and personal protection.
In this session, they will present their ethical framework, consisting of principles, goals, and strategies. They will engage you in the vexing ethical issues associated with deciding which groups should be prioritized to receive these vital resources when everyone is, in varying ways and to varying extents, at risk.
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