Ethical Approaches to Triage in Public Health Emergencies

Abstract

General concepts and about medical disasters, public health and triage are outlined. Ethical values at stake are summarized. A special attention is given to conflicts between protection of individual interests (typical of clinical ethics) and collective interests (typical of public health and triage). Hippocratic ethics is compared to utilitarian ethics and to perspectives that emphasize the principle of justice. Three attitudes are suggested: protection of human dignity, precaution, solidarity. A personalistic perspective is suggested to deepen solidarity as a pillar both of clinical and public health ethics.