Wartime Bioethics, Military Necessity and International Humanitarian Law
Asserting that “medical ethics in times of armed conflict is identical to medical ethics in times of peace,” the World Medical Association overlooks the critical role of military necessity and mission success in the course of medical practice during war. Digging deeper into military medical ethics, this lecture analyzes a number of hard battlefield military dilemmas including mass casualty triage, medical neutrality and impartiality, and care for civilians. In each case, emerging practice during the recent wars in Iraq and Afghanistan demonstrates how wartime military medical ethics differs significantly from its peacetime counterpart.
Reading(s):
Saving Life, Limb & Eyesight: Assessing the Medical Rules of Eligibility During Armed Conflict