Planning for and managing COVID-19: Ethical decision-making tool
Dr Rosalind McDougall, Senior Lecturer in Health Ethics, Melbourne School of Population and Global Health
Dr Linda Sheahan, Honorary Associate, Sydney Health Ethics
Dr Danielle Ko, Clinical Ethics Lead, Austin Health
rmcdo@unimelb.edu.au
Ethics offers a structured way of navigating some of the overwhelming choices facing clinicians and other hospital decision-makers in the COVID-19 crisis. Articulating shared values and a process for ethical decision-making offers some scaffolding for very difficult choices.
Please view: Ethical decision-making tool
This ethical tool was developed collaboratively by ethicists and clinicians. It will not take away from the difficulty of making pandemic related decisions. Each situation will require judgement about how to apply and weight the relevant ethical values. However, its use will promote ethical decision making by guiding decision-makers to consider the relevant values, follow a structured process, and clearly document decisions.