Theories in economics suggest that resource allocation should be conducted in a way that produces the most benefits on the premise that this redistribution of resources can benefit everyone. According to Skedgel et al. (2015), this is called in healthcare as “quality-adjusted life-year (QALY) maximization,” but that the reasoning for the use of QALY maximization may not be feasible in practical healthcare settings (p. 94). If I were a doctor in the hospital during hurricane Katrina, the allocation of healthcare should be regarded according to the principles of efficiency and distributive justice. I would consider patient age, end health state, disease severity, distributional concerns, and duration of benefit. As Skedgel et al. (2015) studied, doctors tend to prefer younger patients and are averse to patients with the shortest life expectancies when making choices about resource allocation (p. 96). As a doctor during the time of disaster, I would consider the aforementioned factors when deciding how to allocate resources. I believe that patients’ conditions can be increased by prioritizing programs that satisfy the preferences of society the most. Therefore, as a doctor in this situation, I would prioritize patients who have better prognoses, longer life expectancies, and who are younger. Distributive justice is not always fair; however, in situations that require the allocation of limited resources, this principle should be used, along with maximizing efficiency (Skedgel et al. 2015, p. 94). During catastrophes and armed with limited resources, doctors should carefully consider how these resources are used. I would evacuate younger patients first and those that have less severe illnesses. In addition, I would also allocate more medicines to those who have a higher chance of recovering compared to those that do not. While it is painful to decide in this manner, the greatest benefit for the largest number of people should be considered, and younger patients have more chances to contribute to society compared to older or sicker patients since they have a longer lifespan.
References
Skedgel, C., Wailoo, A., & Akehurst, R. (2014). Societal Preferences for Distributive Justice in the Allocation of Health Care Resources. Medical Decision Making, 35 (1), 94-105. doi:10.1177/0272989x14547915
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