Educating ethically during COVID-19

International Journal of Ethics Education 6 (1):177-193 (2021)
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Abstract

One of the perplexing features of an infectious disease is the damage it causes, not only to physical health, but to mental health and to social relationships. This tension between the separation that is required for safety and the human need for contact is especially felt by institutions of higher education. Many such institutions not only educate students but seek to foster the kinds of communities which have thrived on personal interaction and shared physical space. Different institutions have responded to COVID-19 and its impacts on their members differently. Given that the spring semester will begin months before COVID-19 vaccines are widely available, we offer seven recommendations and argue that for a university, college, or other similarly situated educational institution to ethically respond to the pandemic, it must follow these recommendations. These recommendations are grounded in both scientific research and ethical analysis. Proper ethical analysis, which is necessary for the implementation of good policies, cannot be accomplished without an evidence-based grounding. After describing features of the virus and the situation that faces higher education institutions, in general, we turn to a detailed discussion of transmission. We discuss interventions available to institutions, including masking, hygiene, barriers, and testing and surveillance. Our recommendations are supported by an ethical analysis reliant on four themes: expertise, planning, stewardship, and dignity.

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Bryan Pilkington
University of Notre Dame

Citations of this work

The evolution of ethics education.Henk ten Have - 2021 - International Journal of Ethics Education 6 (1):1-2.

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References found in this work

Dignity, Health, and Membership: Who Counts as One of Us?Bryan C. Pilkington - 2016 - Journal of Medicine and Philosophy 41 (2):115-129.
Is there a medical profession in the house.Allen Buchanan - 1996 - In Roy G. Spece, David S. Shimm & Allen E. Buchanan, Conflicts of interest in clinical practice and research. New York: Oxford University Press. pp. 105--36.

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