L’apport du droit, de la raison publique et de l’éthique citoyenne face à la Covid-19

The first lessons from the Covid-19 health crisis are starting to point to a deep crisis in benevolent approaches to care, recognition, and professionalism, as well as considerable disarray as to the possibility of maintaining decent support for the elderly. In this context, ethical backup units were formed in the setting of the health emergency, at the invitation of the National Consultative Ethics Committee, by the Regional Ethical Reflection venues, aiming to provide relief to health professionals and all those grappling with ethical dilemmas linked to the Covid-19 pandemic. To provide ethical benchmarks, the National Conference of the Regional Ethical Reflection venues will also establish supporting tools for reflection or guides to help ethics bodies in their civic action. In view of the main observations, lockdown was at once the best as the worst thing, and the compounded confinement in a nursing home bedroom was a tragedy for many dependent elderly people.