These case studies and discussion questions are designed as a teaching resource for all those who wish to promote group discussion and reflection about the ethical questions raised for our societies by the coronavirus pandemic.
In groups, read aloud the following case studies and discuss the questions below.
Case Study 1 – social distancing: During a period of high Covid-19 transmission, local authorities have issued a strongly worded recommendation that unvaccinated people should reduce their interactions with others and practice social distancing in order to slow the spread of the coronavirus in the wider population. Joya is a healthy, unvaccinated young person experiencing no disease symptoms. A group of local unvaccinated friends has arranged a small get-together at a nearby house to blow off some steam, and Joya has been invited. Joya and her friends feel frustrated and isolated since local schools and sports teams closed down weeks ago. No one at the house will be in a high-risk category for serious illness from coronavirus.
Which of the following values is most relevant to this issue? Explain your choices.
Justice Safety Equality Empathy Freedom Respect Loyalty Compassion
- What should Joya say to her friends when they message her and ask her to come over? Give reasons for your answer.
- Are there any factors that make it hard to know what she should do?
- In fact, on grounds of public health, Joya should not attend the party, and she should try to dissuade her friends from hosting this event. Why might it be difficult to do the right thing in this case?
- How can communities make sure that government measures to limit the spread of coronavirus are practically effective and appropriate?
Case Study 2 – discrimination: As she walks through campus and sits in class, Rosen Huynh tries extra hard to suppress her coughs. Fear of the coronavirus, which was first detected in December in China, has spread around the world, and many people like Huynh are suddenly hyperaware of their East Asian roots. Every cough, every wheeze, the 22-year-old says, seems to elicit furtive glances and odd looks.“I don’t know if it’s just people looking at me coughing or because I’m an Asian person coughing, they think I might have the coronavirus,” said Huynh, who lives in Monterey Park. “I feel like every time I cough, people are going to be uncomfortable with that. I shouldn’t have to feel that way” (LA Times, 2/3/20)
- Have you or anyone you know experienced similar kinds of emotions to those experienced by Rosen Huynh, whether at school or anywhere else? If you are comfortable doing so, please explain.
- “I shouldn’t have to feel that way.” What can we as a community do to guard against the kind of discomfort that Rosen Huynh, other Asian Americans, and other groups are experiencing as a result of the coronavirus epidemic?
Case study 3 – resource allocation: In cases of disease pandemics, there can be shortages of medical resources like masks, hospital beds, ventilators, and medical staff. Ordinary “business as usual” can become more chaotic.
- In these kinds of cases…How do you think people seeking emergency medical care should be prioritized? Rank the options below in order of importance, and please explain your choices.
- first come, first served
- medical need, the sickest patients first
- most “socially valuable” patients (e.g., physicians, first responders…) first
- randomized, a lottery system
- other – please explain
- In these exceptional situations, it may become dangerous for medical staff to stay at their posts and treat infected patients. Do hospitals and the government have a responsibility to support medical staff to do this? If so, what should be the nature of such support?