Pregnant women, sick doctors and young parents should be given priority with coronavirus treatment

Pregnant women, doctors and young parents: Who will get access to ventilators and other coronavirus equipment if hospitals are swamped – and it’s bad news for the elderly

  • Ethics researchers have suggested who is a priority for scarce medical care  
  • The guideline is a recommendation for practitioners during COVID-19 pandemic 
  • Priority patients are health care workers, young people and pregnant women

Coronavirus-stricken doctors, pregnant women and young patients would be given priority access to ventilators if Australia’s hospitals were overwhelmed, a health committee says.  

An ethics framework put together by researchers at the University of Sydney considers how clinicians should weigh-up who receives scarce medical care if the COVID-19 crisis rapidly escalated.  

The Sydney Health Ethics committee recommends a group of practitioners at each hospital should be established to make ‘resource allocation’ decisions in the event of a sudden spike in severe cases.   

The guideline – which acknowledges resource allocation decisions would be ‘controversial’ – suggests clinicians should consider who would get the most out of scarce resources. 

Pregnant women, doctors and young patients should be a priority if severely ill with coronavirus and in need of ventilators, ethics researchers have claimed (stock image)

‘We could give priority to interventions that get the most out of our limited resources, where this is interpreted in slightly different ways,’ the guideline reads.

‘E.g. most efficient use of resources, most medical benefit, most cost-effective use.’

The document states decisions for care cannot be based on gender, ethnicity, sexuality, disability, religious and political views, but some members of community can be given priority. 

These patients include health care workers, young people and pregnant women. 

‘Giving priority to health care workers so they are able to continue working and benefit the population as long as possible,’ the document reads.

‘Priority to the young over the old to maximise length of lives saved, priority to those with care responsibilities.

‘Other possible groups that we could choose to prioritise might include pregnant women or those with caring responsibilities for others e.g. children or elderly relatives.’

The guideline says resource allocation should be considered on a case-by-case basis and clinicians should protect themselves from risk.

An ethics framework put together by researchers at the University of Sydney considers how clinicians should weigh-up who receives scarce medical care during the coronavirus crisis (stock image)

An ethics framework put together by researchers at the University of Sydney considers how clinicians should weigh-up who receives scarce medical care during the coronavirus crisis (stock image)

‘Clinicians involved in responding to COVID-19 should accept that they are, themselves, a vitally important and scarce resource that also needs to be used wisely.

‘Clinicians should protect themselves and not work in circumstances where they are at unnecessary risk. 

‘Clinicians should avoid ”heroic” or ”sacrificial” actions that are likely to take them out of the health care system.’ 

According to a 2018 report by Australian and New Zealand Intensive Care Society (ANZICS), NSW has 874 ICU beds.

The report said Australia had 8.92 beds per 100,000 population and a total of 2,229 ICU beds. 

According to a 2018 report by Australian and New Zealand Intensive Care Society, there are a total of 2,229 ICU beds in Australia

According to a 2018 report by Australian and New Zealand Intensive Care Society, there are a total of 2,229 ICU beds in Australia 

Read more at DailyMail.co.uk