Accounting for vulnerability to illness and social disadvantage in pandemic critical care triage
Kaposy, C.
Journal of Clinical Ethics 21(1): 23-29
2010
ISSN/ISBN: 1046-7890 PMID: 20465071 Document Number: 638881
In a pandemic situation, resources in intensive care units may be stretched to the breaking point, and critical care triage may become necessary. In such a situation, I argue that a patient's combined vulnerability to illness and social disadvantage should be a justification for giving that patient some priority for critical care. In this article I present an example of a critical care triage protocol that recognizes the moral relevance of vulnerability to illness and social disadvantage, from the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador.