Category / Case Studies / Medical Ethics / Nursing Ethics / Pandemic / Pandemic Ethics
-
![Nurse resting on a sofa.]()
Case Study – Moral Distress of Hospital Workers
Unable to answer the question definitively, Sandra is left speechless. This is not the first patient with severe COVID for whom she’s provided nursing care. Apart from the incredibly high number of COVID hospitalizations recently, there has also been a disturbingly high number of COVID deaths, and it’s all been taking an emotional toll on hospital staff, including Sandra.
-
![A portrait of a young boy.]()
Case Study – Vaccinating Children
Anwar is a five-year old child who is eligible to get a recommended COVID vaccine recently approved for children 5-11 years. He is at the pediatrician’s office with his parents.
-
![Woman in pain looking out a window.]()
Case Study – Vaccination Mandates
A referring nephrologist believes that Sonya needs a kidney transplant for longer term survival, as well as improved quality of life. The transplant program to which Sonya is referred urges all patients to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19.
-
![Male emergence room patient being worked on.]()
Case Study – Scarce Resources
Mr. Jones is a 55-year-old, suffering from multiple medical issues including COVID-19. Mr. Jones is being treated in the ICU and is intubated. He had refused to get a vaccine for COVID-19, believing that he was healthy enough to “handle the flu.” This wasn’t the case, as Mr. Jones became severely ill and thus had to be intubated.
-
![Sick patient in hospital bed with IV.]()
Case Study – Vaccine Hesitancy and Individual Freedom
Jennifer is a 44-year-old patient who is critically ill in the ICU. She is COVID positive and is now going through multi-system organ failure as her lungs and kidneys become weaker. Prior to infection, Jennifer refused to be vaccinated.
-
![Woman getting a band aid after a vaccine.]()
Case Study – “I Don’t Trust It.” Vaccine Hesitancy During a Pandemic
Sam (age 54) and Rebecca (age 56) Johnson are chatting with their neighbor and family friend Dr. Irving. During the friendly talk, the topic of COVID-19 vaccines comes up. Dr. Irving says that he just got his second dose to be fully vaccinated but that it really “knocked me down for two days.” At this, Sam and Rebecca both say that is one of the reasons they do not think they will get the vaccine.
-
![A woman practicing yoga.]()
Case Study – Vaccine Line Skipping: A Matter of Fairness
Jessica is a 33-year-old female, who relatively speaking, is a healthy individual. She does have level 1 asthma, which is well managed and has not had an incident or attack in recent memory. Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, she has been “working from home” for the past year, with no excessive diminishing of her quality of life.
-
![Nurse showing stress.]()
Case Study – Moral Distress and Hospital Workers
Jennifer is an ICU nurse, having worked for Pleasantville Medical Center for 20 years. Currently, she says she is taking Covid-19 hard. She has confided to friends and fellow hospital staff that she feels she is carrying a large burden.
-
![A simple window in a dark room representing isolation.]()
Case Study – The Isolated Long-Term-Care Patient and Scarce Resource Allocation
Patient is an 82-year-old female, who is currently a resident at a long-term care facility. The patient is suffering from severe dementia, COPD, and other conditions, and recently tested positive for COVID-19.
-
![A woman wearing a face mask with virus graphics floating around.]()
Case Study –“But I’m Asymptomatic to the Virus!” Quarantine Ethics
Jane is 40-year old physician who is travelling back from providing free medical care oversees. She has been stationed in South America, where a new virus is spreading. Very little is known about the virus but is has been shown to be extremely contagious through the air.
