Citation

Egodage T, Doucet J, Patel PP, Martin MJ. Trauma Surg. Acute Care Open 2024; 9(Suppl 2): e001389.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2024, The author(s) and the American Association for the Surgery of Trauma, Publisher BMJ Publishing Group)

DOI

10.1136/tsaco-2024-001389

PMID

38646029

PMCID

PMC11029244

Abstract

The primary ethical principle guiding general medical practice is autonomy. However, in mass casualty (MASCAL) or disaster scenarios, the principles of beneficence and justice become of foremost concern. Despite multiple reviews, publications, and training courses available to prepare for a MASCAL incident, a minority of physicians and healthcare providers are abreast of these. In this review, we describe several MASCAL scenarios and their associated ethical, moral, and medicolegal quandaries in attempts to curb potential future misadventures.

Language: en

Keywords

Ethics, Medical; intensive care units; Mass Casualty Incidents; Patient Comfort