By Ciara Staunton and Deborah Mascalzoni. The timely access to and sharing of personal data during a public health emergency (PHE) is critical. It is essential for disease surveillance, to inform national and more localised responses, but it is also critical for research into new diagnostics, therapies and vaccines, as well as safety monitoring of […]
Latest articles
Age-selective mixing to control the COVID-19 epidemic – still relevant in 2021?
James M Trauer, Ben J Marais, Romain Ragonnet, Bridget M Williams, James Cameron, Julian Savulescu. In a previous blog and now feature article in JME we explored the ethics of selective liberty restriction of the vulnerable. In that paper, we considered whether differential liberty restriction could be ethically justified. Here we consider the complementary public […]
The health supply chain and bioethics: Notes towards a person-centred approach to the health supply chain
By Michael Saunders. In our ongoing research on the COVID-19 pandemic, supply chain strategy, and health system outcomes in Canada, we have heard frequently about the incredible increase in cost of personal protective equipment (PPE) during the first wave of the pandemic. We have heard as well about the cost-saving pressures that regularly shape health […]
The Unconscious Violinist – 50 Years On
By Matthew John Minehan. 2021 marks 50 years since the publication of Judith Jarvis Thomson’s seminal paper, ‘A defense of abortion’, in which she introduced the world to a very famous and very unconscious violinist. It also marks mere months since Thomson’s passing in November 2020. For both these reasons, a fresh look at her […]
Challenge studies for COVID-19: Now is still not the time
By Françoise Baylis and Landon J Getz Two challenge studies for COVID-19 involving the deliberate infection of healthy volunteers aged 18-30 are underway in the UK. Both studies involve the original strain of SARS-CoV-2 from Wuhan China, and not the recent variants of concern – commonly referred to as B.1.1.7, B.1.351 and P.1. These variants […]
UK COVID-19 human challenge trials need participants. International volunteers are ready to heed the call
By Zacharia Kafuko. Last month, the UK government approved a bold innovation that will take us closer to finally ending the COVID-19 pandemic: human challenge trials, which involve deliberately exposing volunteers to the coronavirus to help researchers study the disease. The first trial began in London in early March, involving up to ninety volunteers. Another trial, which […]
How the laboratory and the pathologist affect access to care
By Cullen M. Lilley and Kamran M. Mirza. As you sit in your hospital room after surgery, a feeling of uncertainty may start to grow. Each tube blood draw is like a tally mark for another day gone by without an answer. Meanwhile, each tube of blood, biopsy material, or the resection from your surgery […]
The carbon emissions of prescribing practices
By Cristina Richie. Health care has a carbon footprint, which contributes to climate change and climate change health hazards, like severe weather, flooding, tornadoes, drought, and anxiety. Carbon emissions come from health care structures and health care activities. Health care structures like hospitals and clinics rely on high-carbon use building materials, heat and cooling, water […]
Call for papers: Operationalising Fairness in Medical Algorithms
From the BMJ Health & Care Informatics: This special issue aims to bring together the growing community of healthcare practitioners, social scientists, policymakers, engineers and computer scientists to design and discuss practical solutions to address algorithmic fairness and accountability. We are inviting papers that explore ways to reduce machine bias in healthcare or create algorithms that […]
When the going gets tough, where do persons with disabilities stand? Covid-19 pandemic, community-centered medicine and scarce health resources allocation
By Nicola Panocchia, Viola D’Ambrosio, Serafino Corti, Eluisa Lo Presti, Marco Bertelli, Maria Luisa Scattoni, and Filippo Ghelma The COVID-19 pandemic led to a shift in the medical paradigm from person-centered medicine to community-centered medicine. This shift gives “priority to community health above that of the individual patient in allocating scarce resources”. The patient-physician relationship […]