Ethical decision making in disasters and emergencies
Citation: Cuthbertson J, Penney G. Ethical Decision Making in Disaster and Emergency Management: a systematic review of the literature. Prehospital and Disaster Medicine. 2023;38(5):622–627.
Language: Abstract and full text available in EN.
Free to view: Yes.
Funding sources: Nothing noted.
What is this: There are complex moral and ethical challenges related to the allocation of resources during disasters and emergencies. In this systematic review, the authors searched for peer-reviewed studies on the use of ethical guidance to inform decision-making during disasters and emergencies. They restricted their searches to articles published in English between 2003 and 2022 and did the search in December 2022. The authors included 33 studies.
What was found: There was ethical guidance to inform decision-making for disaster management in the humanitarian system based on principles of humanity, impartiality, neutrality, and independence. Ethical guidance was varied or absent in other emergency agencies and systems.
Implications: The authors recommended the development and validation of frameworks for ethical decision-making in disasters. If decisions were perceived as unjust, the consequences may erode trust, cause moral injury to staff, and divide communities.
Other considerations: The authors of the review did not discuss their findings in the context of issues relating to health equity.
This summary was written by Eszter Szocs, checked by Sneha Bhadti and finalized by William Summerskilll.