Emergencies are extreme events which threaten to cause massive disruption to society and negatively affect the physical and psychological well-being of its members. They raise important practical and theoretical questions about how we should treat each other in times of ’crisis’. The articles selected for this volume focus on the nature and significance of emergencies; ethical issues in emergency public policy and law; war, terrorism and supreme emergencies; and public health and humanitarian emergencies. Together they demonstrate the normative implications of emergencies and provide multi-disciplinary perspectives on the ethics of emergency response.

Leading scholars in bioethics and public health ethics clarify the key values and norms of emergency planning and response and address ethical issues relating to the allocation of scarce resources, research in the context of emergencies, community participation in preparedness planning, the protection of those with special needs, and the duties public health professionals.

Part of the "What Do I Do Now?: Emergency Medicine" series, Legal and Ethical Issues in Emergency Medicine uses a case-based approach to cover common and important topics in the legal and ethical dilemmas that surface in the practice of emergency medicine. Each unique case draws upon the four well-established principles of bioethics: beneficence, non-maleficence, respect for autonomy, and justice. Other ethical principles, such as honesty and personal integrity, are also addressed. Chapters are rounded out by key points to remember and selected references for further reading. Legal and Ethical Issues in Emergency Medicine addresses a wide range of topics including HIPPA and confidentiality, advance directives, suicidal patients, refusal of care, expert witness testimony, and more. This book is an engaging collection of thought-provoking cases which clinicians can utilize when they encounter difficult situations in the emergency department. The volume is also a self-assessment tool that tests the reader's ability to answer the question, "What do I do now?"

The essays selected for this volume focus on issues that arise when attempting to design, review and undertake research involving human participants who are experiencing a private or public emergency. The main themes discussed by the essays are: the distinctive and significant ethical questions as to how research participants can be treated during emergency settings; the ethical challenges raised by emergencies for researchers undertaking research and its effects on the nature of research pursued; and procedural obstacles raised by emergencies which can affect the quality of good research ethics review. The volume is unique in that it is the first collection to exclusively deal with all of the central ethical aspects of conducting human subject research in the context of emergency.

This book is designed to consolidate the relevant literature as well as the thoughts of professionals currently working in the field into a practical and accessible reference for the emergency medical technician, student, nurse, resident, and attending emergency physician. Each chapter is divided into four sections: case presentation, discussion, review of the current literature, and recommendations. Designed to serve simultaneously as a learning and reference tool, each chapter begins with a real case that was encountered in an ED setting. The case presentation is followed by a short discussion of the case, as if at a morbidity and mortality conference, by a panel of experienced attending physicians explaining how they would approach the ethical dilemmas associated with the case, and a review of the existing literature.

The essays selected for this volume focus on issues that arise when attempting to design, review and undertake research involving human participants who are experiencing a private or public emergency. The volume is unique in that it is the first collection to exclusively deal with all of the central ethical aspects of conducting human subject research in the context of emergency.

1. General Introduction -- 2. Unique Aspects of Ethics in Emergency Medicine -- 3. Legal Setting of Emergency Medicine -- 4. What is Ethics? -- 5. An Approach to Ethical Problems in Emergency Medicine -- 6. Autonomy and Informed Consent -- 7. Education and Research -- 8. Privacy and Confidentiality -- 9. Life-Sustaining Treatment - Emergency Department -- 10. Life-Sustaining Treatment - Prehospital -- 11. Professional Relations -- 12. Allocation of Health Care Resources -- 13. Quality of Care -- 14. Threatening Situations -- 15. Ethical Statements - Overview -- Appendix. Prehospital Advance Directives.

Award-winning critic Elaine Scarry provides a vital new assessment of leadership during crisis that ensures the protection of democratic values. In Thinking in an Emergency, Elaine Scarry lays bare the realities of “emergency” politics and emphasizes what she sees as the ultimate ethical concern: “equality of survival.” She reveals how regular citizens can reclaim the power to protect one another and our democratic principles. Government leaders sometimes argue that the need for swift national action means there is no time for the population to think, deliberate, or debate. But Scarry shows that clear thinking and rapid action are not in opposition. Examining regions as diverse as Japan, Switzerland, Ethiopia, and Canada, Scarry identifies forms of emergency assistance that represent “thinking” at its most rigorous and remarkable. She draws on the work of philosophers, scientists, and artists to remind us of our ability to assist one another, whether we are called upon to perform acts of rescue as individuals, as members of a neighborhood, or as citizens of a country.

Chapter 10 is published open access and free to read or download from Oxford Academic. The Ethics of Surveillance in Times of Emergency draws from the use of modern surveillance technologies during the COVID-19 pandemic to explore a set of issues and challenges facing decision-makers and designers in times of emergency: how do we respond to emergencies in ways that are both consistent with democratic and community principles, and that are ethically justifiable? Emergencies, like public health pandemics, not only place stress on existing infrastructure and communities, but put significant pressure on our decision-making. The use of surveillance technologies during public health crises is a vital frame to explore the challenge of acting in times of emergency. Moreover, as an exercise in reflective applied ethics, this book does not just seek to apply a given theory or principle to the problem of surveillance in times of emergency, but to use the challenges facing us to critically engage with, reflect upon, and develop those theories and principles. The book's authors recognize this challenge—is it possible to respond to exceptional conditions in ways that either preserve our core values, or must these core values be subsumed under the need to respond to the particular emergency? The book offers responses to this challenge by looking at three interrelated ways in which can manifest: first, the democratic challenges; second, the ethical challenges; and third the design challenges faced in developing ethical solutions.