Summary
Trisha Greenhalgh and colleagues argue that it is time to apply the precautionary principle. The precautionary principle is, according to Wikipedia, “a strategy for approaching issues of potential harm when extensive scientific knowledge on the matter is lacking.” The evidence base on the efficacy and acceptability of the different types of face mask in preventing respiratory infections during epidemics is sparse and contested. But COVID-19 is a serious illness that currently has no known treatment or vaccine and is spreading in an immune naive population. Deaths are rising steeply, and health systems are under strain.
This raises an ethical question: should policy makers apply the precautionary principle now and encourage people to wear face masks on the grounds that we have little to lose and potentially something to gain from this measure? Greenhalgh and colleagues believe we should. However, there are criticisms of this view.
Read the original analysis published in the BMJ and Tricia Greenhalgh's follow up paper in the Journal of Evaluation in Clinical Practice where she rebutts the criticisms received.
Content
- Face masks for the public during the covid-19 crisis
- Face coverings for the public: Laying straw men to rest
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