What is the most ethical response for Doris regarding each of her family members?

Fair Distribution of Scarce Vaccine Resources During a Pandemic
Registered nurse Doris is the nurse in charge of the immunization program for the health department at the county level. A COVID pandemic is occurring with the virus that has a high fatality rate. A vaccine just came available in small quantities. Doris, in collaboration with other health department administrators, must lead her team in immunizing the public. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has notified all U.S. health departments that vaccines should be prioritized according to the CDC’s COVID-related ethics documents during a significant COVID pandemic. Doris’s family members live in the city where Doris lives and works, and their statuses are:
o Husband is an attorney; children are aged 1, 5, and 7; are all in good health.
o Parents are both retired; father has chronic lymphocytic leukemia; mother is in good health.
o Sister runs a day-care center for young children in her home; husband is a truck driver for Walmart; they have a 2-year-old child.
o Brother manages the housekeeping department and the department that handles hazardous waste at the county hospital; the hospital has not yet received the vaccine; wife is a manager at a grocery store.
o Sister is administrative assistant to mayor of the largest city in the county; husband is a pharmacist at a retail pharmacy; their 10-year-old son has asthma.
o Brother owns and manages a jewelry store; wife owns and manages an upscale beauty salon; their son is 16 years old and is in good health.

1. Doris’s family knows she supervises the administration of COVID vaccine. Someone from each family unit asks her whether their family members can receive the vaccine. What is the most ethical response for Doris regarding each of her family members? Should any of her family members receive the vaccine? Why or why not?
2. Some of the nurses who work in the immunization department asks Doris about whether they can give the vaccine to their family members. Doris decides she needs to discuss this issue with all the nurses in a meeting. What should she tell them?
3. Does Doris’s situation constitute an ethical dilemma? Why or why not?
4. Which ethical theories, approaches, and concepts are relevant to Doris’s decision making? Support your choices.

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