Emerging technology used in public health surveillance has increased tremendously in the past decade and especially during the COVID-19 pandemic. Technologies such as surveillance video monitoring, facial recognition software, and artificial intelligence are used with increasing frequency in the name of preventing or containing diseases. These same technologies have been used by governments for uses other than public health surveillance in so-called “function creep.” Such uses can infringe upon individual autonomy and personal privacy. Ethical analysis during the COVID pandemic typically followed utilitarian analytical frameworks. This presentation uses a virtue ethics analysis of surveillance technologies emphasizing honesty, responsibility, and compassion. Utilitarian ethical analysis leads governmental actions to seek actions and use technologies that protect the most people, but do not necessarily benefit minority groups. Virtue ethics presents a firmer ground to protect the health of the community while safeguarding minority rights through its focus on the moral development and character formation of the public health professional, the individual, and the community. Lastly, a Christian reflection on such issues is examined. Ethical analysis of public health surveillance technologies must precede use of such technologies. A virtue ethics approach can assist in such analysis, supporting the health of the community while protecting the rights of the vulnerable.
Tag Archives: utilitarianism
Ethical Considerations for Offering Non-Invasive Prenatal Tests Within a Public Healthcare System: A Rule Utilitarian Perspective
Non-invasive prenatal testing (NIPT) appeals to the general obstetrical population due to its reliability and safety in fetal aneuploidy screening. However, it often attracts ethical concerns when offered via publicly funded healthcare systems. Using moral reasoning, this paper makes rule utilitarian arguments to address the ethical question: How can NIPT be ethically offered to the general obstetric population via a public healthcare system for the detection of fetal aneuploidy? Three moral arguments were constructed deductively, upon which three governing “rules” are based. According to rule utilitarianism, policies that consider and conform to these rules should lead to maximization of utility for the greatest number of people. This paper provides a moral foundation for formulating policies that govern the roles of NIPT in fetal aneuploidy screening programs and may, therefore, have implications for many people, including pregnant women, the disabled, and society as a whole.