Pandemic influenza preparedness: ethical issues and recommendations to the Indiana State Department of Health

Abstract

In August of 2007, the Indiana University Center for Bioethics (IUCB) presented to the Indiana State Department of Health (ISDH) a set of technical advisory documents (TADs) addressing ethical issues that may arise in the event of an influenza pandemic. The topics of altered standards of care, triage, vaccine allocation, and healthcare workforce management all were addressed in these documents, each with its own annotated bibliography. Additionally, IUCB provided to ISDH an ethical framework entitled Points to Consider, which consisted of a set of seven ethical points that the Center believed the State should take into consideration when developing policies and procedures related to pandemic influenza response. Since that time, ethicists, researchers, and policymakers have continued to contribute to the literature and develop policies addressing ethical pandemic influenza planning. As a result, ISDH again contracted with IUCB to update the previous documents with the most current thinking on the respective topics.