Self-tests for influenza: an empirical ethics investigation

BMC Medical Ethics

Research Article

James Wilson¹  Benedict Rumbold¹  Clare Wenham² 

[1] Department of Philosophy, University College London, Gower Street, WC1E 6BT, London, UK;LSE Health and Social Care, Cowdray House, London School of Economics and Political Science, Houghton Street, WC2A 2AE, London, UK;

关键词: Self-tests;    Ethics;    Empirical ethics;    Influenza;    Point-of-care tests;    Diagnostics;   

DOI  :  10.1186/s12910-017-0192-y

 received in 2017-01-19, accepted in 2017-04-22,  发布年份 2017

来源: Springer

【 摘 要 】

BackgroundIn this article we aim to assess the ethical desirability of self-test diagnostic kits for influenza, focusing in particular on the potential benefits and challenges posed by a new, mobile phone-based tool currently being developed by i-sense, an interdisciplinary research collaboration based (primarily) at University College London and funded by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council.MethodsOur study adopts an empirical ethics approach, supplementing an initial review into the ethical considerations posed by such technologies with qualitative data from three focus groups.ResultsOverall, we map a range of possible considerations both for and against the use of such technologies, synthesizing evidence from a range of secondary literature, as well as identifying several new considerations previously overlooked.ConclusionsWe argue that no single consideration marks these technologies as either entirely permissible or impermissible but rather tools which have the potential to incur certain costs and benefits, and that context is important in determining these. In the latter stages of the article, we explain how developers of such technologies might seek to mitigate such costs and reflect on the possible limitations of the empirical ethics method brought out during the study.Trial registrationNot applicable.

【 授权许可】

CC BY   
© The Author(s). 2017