• Bioethics Research Library at Georgetown University
• Hastings Center
• Presidential Commission for the Study of Bioethical Issues
• University of Minnesota Center for Bioethics
• UNESCO, Social and Human Sciences, Bioethics Home Page
• Johns Hopkins Berman Institute of Bioethics Home Page; Public Health Ethics

• Health Disaster Management: Guidelines for Evaluation and Research in the Utstein Style (PDF, 149 KB)
  Chapter Eight: Ethical Issues.
  World Association for Disaster and Emergency Medicine
• WMA Statement on Medical Ethics in the Event of Disasters
  World Medical Association
• Principles of the Ethical Practice of Public Health (PDF, 199 KB)
  Public Health Leadership Society
• Ethical and Legal Aspects of Disaster Response
  Free online training course.
  Medical Library Association
• Ethical Principles on Disaster Risk Reduction and People’s Resilience (PDF, 1.3 MB)
  Also available in French. (PDF, 1.4 MB)
  Council of Europe
• Ethics of Health Care Disaster Preparedness
  Wisconsin Department of Health Services, Public Health Preparedness
• Ethical Guidance for Public Health Emergency Preparedness and Response: Highlighting Ethics and Values in a Vital Public Health Service (PDF, 5.8 MB)
  Ethics Subcommittee, Advisory Committee to the Director, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
• Introduction to Ethical Frameworks for Public Health Emergencies and Disasters
  Free online training course.
  University of Minnesota, School of Public Health, Center for Public Health Preparedness
• Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement
  Available in multiple languages.
  United Nations Commission on Human Rights
• Ethical Disaster: How Health Care Professionals May React Ethically in a Disaster (PDF, 955 KB)
  Alabama Department of Public Health
• Disaster Management Ethics (PDF, 955 KB)
  Training booklet.
  United Nations Disaster Management Training Programme
• Ethical Responsibilities of Federal, State and Local Government (PDF, 382 KB)
  Wisconsin Hospital Association
• Ethical Responsibilities of Health Care Vendors (PDF, 379 KB)
  Wisconsin Hospital Association
• Template Policy on Palliative Care in a Disaster (PDF, 28 KB)
  Wisconsin Hospital Association

• Code of Conduct for International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement and NGOs in Disaster Relief
  Also available in French, Spanish and Arabic.
  International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies
• Code of Ethics for Emergency Physicians
  American College of Emergency Physicians
• Sphere Handbook: Humanitarian Charter and Minimum Standards in Humanitarian Response
  The Sphere Project
• Duty to Care in an Emergency, Disaster or Pandemic – Principles
  College of Registered Nurses of Manitoba
• Ethical Responsibilities of Health Care Leadership (PDF, 404 KB)
  Wisconsin Hospital Association
• Ethical Responsibilities of Health Care Professionals (PDF, 376 KB)
  Wisconsin Hospital Association

See also Allocation of Scarce Resources and Triage

• Pandemic Flu Preparedness: Ethical Issues and Recommendations to the Indiana State Department of Health (PDF, 583 KB)
  Indiana University Center for Bioethics
• Stand on Guard for Thee: Ethical Considerations in Preparedness Planning for Pandemic Influenza (PDF, 147 KB)
  University of Toronto Joint Centre for Bioethics
• Ethical Considerations in Developing a Public Health Response to Pandemic Influenza (PDF, 284 KB)
  World Health Organization
• Ethical Guidelines in Pandemic Influenza (PDF, 135 KB)
  Ethics Subcommittee, Advisory Committee to the Director, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
• Pandemic Influenza Ethics Fact Sheet
  [Scroll down to document]
  Ethics Subcommittee, Advisory Committee to the Director, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
• Pandemic Influenza Ethics Checklist
  [Scroll down to document]
  Ethics Subcommittee, Advisory Committee to the Director, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
• Stockpiling Antivirals For Pandemic Influenza: The Key Ethical Principles
  [Scroll down to document]
  Ethics Subcommittee, Advisory Committee to the Director, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
• Interim Pre-pandemic Planning Guidance: Community Strategy for Pandemic Influenza Mitigation in the United States
  U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
• Applying Ethical Frameworks During Severe Pandemic Influenza
  Free training course.
  University of Minnesota, School of Public Health, Center for Public Health

• Guidance for Establishing Crisis Standards of Care for Use in Disaster Situations: A Letter Report (2009)
  Institute of Medicine
• Adapting Standards of Care Under Extreme Conditions: Guidance for Professionals During Disasters, Pandemics, and other Extreme Emergencies (PDF, 2 MB)
  American Nurses Association
• Crisis Standards of Care: A Systems Framework for Catastrophic Disaster Response (2012)
  Institute of Medicine
• “Crisis Standards of Care” in Disasters and Pandemics: A Community Conversation
  Lead Facilitator Guidebook.
  Institute of Medicine
• Crisis Standards of Care: Summary of a Workshop Series (2010)
  Institute of Medicine

• Elderly Populations in Disasters: Hospital Guidelines for Geriatric Preparedness (PDF, 1.1 MB)
  Section 6. Ethical and Legal Issues.
  New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene
• Disasters, Disability and Rehabilitation (PDF, 414 KB)
  World Health Organization
• Disability, Natural Disasters and Emergency Situations
  United Nations, Secretariat for the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities
• Toolkit for Long Term Recovery. Haiti: Reconstruction for All
  Global Partnership for Disability and Development

• Allocation of Scarce Resources During Mass Casualty Events (PDF, 2.7 MB)
  Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
• Mass Medical Care with Scarce Resources: The Essentials
  Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
• Ethical Considerations for Decision Making Regarding Allocation of Mechanical Ventilators during a Severe Influenza Pandemic or Other Public Health Emergency
  Ethics Subcommittee, Advisory Committee to the Director, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
• Hospital and Healthcare System Preparedness Overview
  [Scroll to section on Mass Casualty Incidents]
  Florida Department of Health
• Guidelines for the Allocation of Scarce Resources (PDF, 44 KB)
  Wisconsin Hospital Association
• Executive Summary: Allocation of Scarce Resources Project (PDF, 39 KB)
  Wisconsin Hospital Association
• Guidelines for the Triage of Patients (PDF, 408 KB)
  Wisconsin Hospital Association
• Guide for Planning the Use of Scarce Resources During a Public Health Emergency in Kansas (PDF, 688 KB)
  Kansas Health Institute
• Critical Resource Shortages: A Planning Guide (PDF, 146 KB)
  Virginia Department of Health; Virginia Hospital and Healthcare Association
• Pandemic Influenza: Triage and Scarce Resource Allocation Guidelines. Draft: April 5, 2011 (PDF, 584 KB)
  Florida Department of Health
• Criteria for Mechanical Ventilator Triage Following Proclamation of Mass-Casualty Respiratory Emergency (PDF, 231 KB)
  Alabama Department of Public Health

• Who Will Be There?: Ethics, the Law, and a Nurse's Duty to Respond in a Disaster (PDF, 589 KB)
  American Nurses Association
• Reporting for Duty? A Synthesis of Research on Role Conflict, Strain, and Abandonment among Emergency Responders during Disasters and Catastrophes (PDF, 517 KB)
  University of Delaware Disaster Research Center