School of Theology, Philosophy, and Music, Dublin City University, Dublin, Ireland.
Nurs Inq. 2021 Jan;28(1):e12389. doi: 10.1111/nin.12389. Epub 2020 Nov 22.
The prioritisation of scarce resources has a particular urgency within the context of the COVID-19 pandemic crisis. This paper sets out a hypothetical case of Patient X (who is a nurse) and Patient Y (who is a non-health care worker). They are both in need of a ventilator due to COVID-19 with the same clinical situation and expected outcomes. However, there is only one ventilator available. In addressing the question of who should get priority, the proposal is made that the answer may lie in how the pandemic is metaphorically described using military terms. If nursing is understood to take place at the 'frontline' in the 'battle' against COVID-19, a principle of military medical ethics-namely the principle of salvage-can offer guidance on how to prioritise access to a life-saving resource in such a situation. This principle of salvage purports a moral direction to return wounded soldiers back to duty on the battlefield. Applying this principle to the hypothetical case, this paper proposes that Patient X (who is a nurse) should get priority of access to the ventilator so that he/she can return to the 'frontline' in the fight against COVID-19.
在 COVID-19 大流行危机的背景下，稀缺资源的优先分配具有特殊的紧迫性。本文提出了一个假设的病例，患者 X（是一名护士）和患者 Y（是非卫生保健工作者）都因 COVID-19 需要呼吸机，且临床情况和预期结果相同。然而，只有一台呼吸机可用。在解决谁应该优先获得呼吸机的问题时，有人提出，答案可能在于如何用军事术语来隐喻描述大流行。如果将护理理解为在 COVID-19 斗争中的“前线”进行，那么军事医疗伦理原则——即抢救原则——可以为在这种情况下如何优先获得救命资源提供指导。这一抢救原则旨在让受伤的士兵重返战场继续执行任务。将这一原则应用于假设的病例，本文提出，患者 X（是一名护士）应优先获得呼吸机，以便他/她能够重返 COVID-19 战斗的“前线”。
