Ethics

Question 0

Duty to care

Answer 0

Physicians have a duty to care as best they can for all victims of the incident

Question 1

Core components of ethical decision making:

Fairness

Answer 1

To treat every individual in need equally

Question 2

Duty to be steward resources

Answer 2

Physicians have a duty to attempt to obtain the best outcome for the greatest number of patients with the resources available (this does not specifically translate to “save the most lives” because a comfortable death may be a good outcome and thus appropriate to receive resources,

Question 3

Transparency

Answer 3

Though difficult in reactive triage decisions, the process and criteria should be transparent as possible.

Question 4

Consistency

Answer 4

The process should be applied in the same way to all presenting for care

Question 5

Proportionally

Answer 5

The degree of resource restriction should be proportional to the demands

Question 6

Accountability

Answer 6

Triage officers and others should be able to decent their decisions and be answerable for them. this may involve documentation and potential review of decisions by the institution and possibly outside agencies.