Comorbidity in context : Part 2. Ethicolegal considerations around HIV and tuberculosis during the COVID-19 pandemic in South Africa

dc.contributor.authorRossouw, Theresa M.
dc.contributor.authorNienaber, A.G. (Annelize Gertruida)
dc.contributor.authorBoswell, Michael T.
dc.contributor.authorMoodley, K.
dc.contributor.emailtheresa.rossouw@up.ac.zaen_ZA
dc.date.accessioned2021-03-24T14:14:33Z
dc.date.available2021-03-24T14:14:33Z
dc.date.issued2020-07
dc.description.abstractThe COVID-19 pandemic has brought discussions around the appropriate and fair rationing of scare resources to the forefront. This is of special importance in a country such as South Africa (SA), where scarce resources interface with high levels of need. A large proportion of the SA population has risk factors associated with worse COVID-19 outcomes. Many people are also potentially medically and socially vulnerable secondary to the high levels of infection with HIV and tuberculosis (TB) in the country. This is the second of two articles. The first examined the clinical evidence regarding the inclusion of HIV and TB as comorbidities relevant to intensive care unit (ICU) admission triage criteria. Given the fact that patients with HIV or TB may potentially be excluded from admission to an ICU on the basis of an assumption of lack of clinical suitability for critical care, in this article we explore the ethicolegal implications of limiting ICU access of persons living with HIV or TB. We argue that all allocation and rationing decisions must be in terms of SA law, which prohibits unfair discrimination. In addition, ethical decision-making demands accurate and evidence-based strategies for the fair distribution of limited resources. Rationing decisions and processes should be fair and based on visible and consistent criteria that can be subjected to objective scrutiny, with the ultimate aim of ensuring accountability, equity and fairness.en_ZA
dc.description.departmentImmunologyen_ZA
dc.description.departmentPublic Lawen_ZA
dc.description.librarianam2021en_ZA
dc.description.urihttp://www.samj.org.zaen_ZA
dc.identifier.citationRossouw, T.M., Boswell, M.T., Nienaber, A.G. et al. 2020, 'Comorbidity in context : Part 2. Ethicolegal considerations around HIV and tuberculosis during the COVID-19 pandemic in South Africa', South African Medical Journal, vol. 110, no. 7, pp. 625-628.en_ZA
dc.identifier.issn0256-9574 (print)
dc.identifier.issn2078-5135 (online)
dc.identifier.other10.7196/SAMJ.2020.v110i7.14857
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/2263/79080
dc.language.isoenen_ZA
dc.publisherHealth and Medical Publishing Groupen_ZA
dc.rights© 2019, South African Medical Association. This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial Works License (CC BY-NC 3.0).en_ZA
dc.subjectHuman immunodeficiency virus (HIV)en_ZA
dc.subjectCOVID-19 pandemicen_ZA
dc.subjectCoronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19)en_ZA
dc.subjectTuberculosis (TB)en_ZA
dc.subjectSouth Africa (SA)en_ZA
dc.subjectComorbidityen_ZA
dc.subjectEthicolegal considerationsen_ZA
dc.titleComorbidity in context : Part 2. Ethicolegal considerations around HIV and tuberculosis during the COVID-19 pandemic in South Africaen_ZA
dc.typeArticleen_ZA

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