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Ethics in Global Surgery

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Surgical Ethics

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Abstract

Global surgery is the provision of surgical care in resource-constrained settings, usually in underdeveloped areas or countries. The context of this care creates a situation in which ethical issues are different from, and arguably, more frequent than, ethical issues in resource rich settings. The focus of this chapter is on global surgical missions in which providers from resourceful settings travel to settings with poor or limited resources to provide surgical care. This chapter begins with a description of the burden of surgical disease worldwide and a discussion of the value of making the treatment of surgical disease in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) a priority. It then describes the benchmarks which organizations should strive to achieve in developing and reviewing global surgical missions. Finally, it presents a methodology for identifying, addressing, and resolving ethical issues that do arise during global surgical missions.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Annette C. and Harold C. Simmons Transplant Institute, Baylor University Medical Center, Dallas, TX, USA

    Anji E. Wall

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  1. Anji E. Wall
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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Surgery, University of Buenos Aires, Buenos Aires, Argentina

    Alberto R. Ferreres

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Wall, A.E. (2019). Ethics in Global Surgery. In: Ferreres, A. (eds) Surgical Ethics. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-05964-4_14

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-05964-4_14

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-030-05963-7

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-030-05964-4

  • eBook Packages: MedicineMedicine (R0)

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