Ethics and SARS: lessons from Toronto

The severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) epidemic showed how easy it is for infectious diseases to spread round the world. Ethical as well as clinical issues need to be resolved to improve the response to the next epidemic The SARS outbreak showed that Canadian society was not fully prepared to deal with the ethical issues. The chapter examines the underlying ethical values for the live major issues and draws lessons from how each was tackled. It aims to develop a framework for looking at the eithical implications of the SARS outbreak, identifying 10 key ethical values relevant to SARS, and some major ethical issues faced by decision makers. The 10 key ethical values are: individual liberty, protection of the public from harm, proportionality, reciprocity, transparency, privacy, protection of communities from undue stigmatisation, duty to provide care, equality and solidarity. The SARS epidemic also showed the urgent need to strengthen the way the world deals with emerging infectious diseases.