Abstract
This article aims to identify the contribution of bioethics to resolve decision-making conflicts in healthcare in times of pandemic. The research was based on the authors’ personal reflections in a dialogue with the literature and different bioethical perspectives. Historical accounts show that when a society is experiencing an epidemic it starts to function in a mode of social exceptionality, reinforcing the need for a more appropriate form of reasoning before the ethical conflicts that may arise from this situation. Some approaches to bioethics – principlism, personalism, utilitarianism and social bioethics – are briefly examined in order to obtain the elements for guiding the decision-making process. Finally, we suggest some parameters for health professionals, recognizing the value of all human lives, to save as many lives as possible.
Pandemics; Bioethics; Personhood