[Ethical Duties in Disaster Preparedness.]

Area of Science:

• Bioethics
• Public Health Ethics
• Disaster Ethics

Background:

• The COVID-19 pandemic and climate change highlight the need for proactive disaster risk management.
• Vulnerable communities disproportionately suffer from the impacts of disasters.

Purpose of the Study:

• To examine the moral duties associated with disaster preparedness.
• To adopt a disaster ethics approach integrating bioethics and public health ethics.

Main Methods:

• Analysis of the full disaster management cycle.
• Examination of the protection cycle for victims and professionals.
• Discussion of normative controversies in disaster classification.

Main Results:

• Preparedness duties involve planning, anticipation, and prevention.
• These duties are derivative and positive, requiring prospective, shared, and mediated responsibilities.

Conclusions:

• Ethical frameworks are essential for effective disaster preparedness.
• Shared institutional responsibilities are key to mitigating disaster impacts on vulnerable populations.