Question

Who should get a ventilator in an epidemic? Explain your answer fully and support your position with a well-reasoned argument.

Answer 1

Every patient who has a need and can benefit from mechanical ventilation should be provided with mechanical ventilators and during a severe pandemic when there is a shortage of ventilators it has to be re-evaluated and ethical considerations should be taken into consideration.

Sickest first is the routine of triage patients in the Emergency department or in the ICU.
The strategy which is used during a pandemic is to use ventilators for patients who ultimately are too sick to survive.
First-come, first-served is used to allocate intensive care unit (ICU) beds during routine clinical circumstances. Once a patient is in the ICU, they are generally not transferred out of the ICU if they still need intensive care unless the patient agrees to life-sustaining interventions. During clinical care, the healthcare system generally can accommodate patients with a very poor prognosis who require an ICU bed for many days and who ultimately may not survive. Other patients are still able to receive intensive care if needed. However, the situation would be different if ventilators are in extremely short supply during a severe influenza pandemic. other patients, who may have a much better prognosis if they receive intensive care, will not have access to it. After a public health emergency is declared, rules that favor the overall benefit to the population and society may have to be considered.