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Ethics of emerging infectious disease outbreak responses: Using Ebola virus disease as a case study of limited resource allocation
- Source :
- PLoS ONE, Vol 16, Iss 2, p e0246320 (2021), PLoS ONE
- Publication Year :
- 2021
- Publisher :
- Public Library of Science (PLoS), 2021.
-
Abstract
- Emerging infectious diseases such as Ebola Virus Disease (EVD), Nipah Virus Encephalitis and Lassa fever pose significant epidemic threats. Responses to emerging infectious disease outbreaks frequently occur in resource-constrained regions and under high pressure to quickly contain the outbreak prior to potential spread. As seen in the 2020 EVD outbreaks in the Democratic Republic of Congo and the current COVID-19 pandemic, there is a continued need to evaluate and address the ethical challenges that arise in the high stakes environment of an emerging infectious disease outbreak response. The research presented here provides analysis of the ethical challenges with regard to allocation of limited resources, particularly experimental therapeutics, using the 2013–2016 EVD outbreak in West Africa as a case study. In-depth semi-structured interviews were conducted with senior healthcare personnel (n = 16) from international humanitarian aid organizations intimately engaged in the 2013–2016 EVD outbreak response in West Africa. Interviews were recorded in private setting, transcribed, and iteratively coded using grounded theory methodology. A majority of respondents indicated a clear propensity to adopt an ethical framework of guiding principles for international responses to emerging infectious disease outbreaks. Respondents agreed that prioritization of frontline workers’ access to experimental therapeutics was warranted based on a principle of reciprocity. There was widespread acceptance of adaptive trial designs and greater trial transparency in providing access to experimental therapeutics. Many respondents also emphasized the importance of community engagement in limited resource allocation scheme design and culturally appropriate informed consent procedures. The study results inform a potential ethical framework of guiding principles based on the interview participants’ insights to be adopted by international response organizations and their healthcare workers in the face of allocating limited resources such as experimental therapeutics in future emerging infectious disease outbreaks to ease the moral burden of individual healthcare providers.
- Subjects :
- Male
Guiding Principles
Epidemiology
Maternal Health
medicine.disease_cause
Research Ethics
Communicable Diseases, Emerging
Disease Outbreaks
Medical Conditions
0302 clinical medicine
Pregnancy
Informed consent
Pandemic
Medicine and Health Sciences
Medical Personnel
030212 general & internal medicine
Research Integrity
Health Care Rationing
Multidisciplinary
Adaptive Clinical Trials as Topic
Humanitarian aid
Therapies, Investigational
Obstetrics and Gynecology
06 humanities and the arts
Middle Aged
Public relations
Professions
Africa, Western
Infectious Diseases
Emerging infectious disease
Medicine
Female
Research Article
Adult
Drug Research and Development
Science Policy
Health Personnel
Science
Research and Analysis Methods
0603 philosophy, ethics and religion
Interviews as Topic
03 medical and health sciences
Political science
medicine
Humans
Clinical Trials
Pharmacology
Research ethics
Ebola virus
business.industry
Outbreak
Hemorrhagic Fever, Ebola
Randomized Controlled Trials
Emerging Infectious Diseases
Medical Risk Factors
People and Places
Women's Health
Population Groupings
060301 applied ethics
Clinical Medicine
business
Subjects
Details
- Language :
- English
- ISSN :
- 19326203
- Volume :
- 16
- Issue :
- 2
- Database :
- OpenAIRE
- Journal :
- PLoS ONE
- Accession number :
- edsair.doi.dedup.....889cd6171eeb4e0ba9b6881716dfc865