Citation

Ram-Tiktin E. Bioethics 2017; 31(6): 467-475.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2017, John Wiley and Sons)

DOI

10.1111/bioe.12352

PMID

28374428

Abstract

Natural disasters in populated areas may result in massive casualties and extensive destruction of infrastructure. Humanitarian aid delegations may have to cope with the complicated issue of patient prioritization under conditions of severe resource scarcity. A triage model, consisting of five principles, is proposed for the prioritization of patients, and it is argued that rational and reasonable agents would agree upon them. The Israel Defense Force's humanitarian mission to Haiti following the 2010 earthquake serves as a case study for the various considerations taken into account when designing the ethical-clinical policy of field hospitals. The discussion focuses on three applications: the decision to include an intensive care unit, the decision to include obstetrics and neonatal units, and the treatment policy for compound fractures.

© 2017 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Language: en

Keywords

field hospital; humanitarian aid; patient prioritization; scarcity; triage