African Values, Influenza Vaccination and The Elderly: Engaging Ethics to Foster Seasonal Influenza Uptake In Adults Aged 65 Years And Older
Ruach Sarangarajan1, University Of The Witwatersrand Johannesburg 1University Of The Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, Gauteng, South Africa
Abstract
In this paper, I draw on the thinking about solidarity, reciprocity and distributive justice grounded in Afro-communitarian ethics from the Global South to argue for institutions’, particularly governments’, prima facie duties to foster influenza vaccine uptake for adults 65 years and older. Notably, these duties are that governments ought to make influenza vaccines freely available for the elderly in both the public and private sectors, provided financial allocation and their extant relationships allow for this. Further, the government has a duty to improve influenza vaccine procurement and availability in the country, preferably through increasing manufacturing capabilities. This paper is intrinsically valuable to promote epistemic justice, thereby contributing towards the decolonisation of the global healthcare system. Moreover, this project has social significance in contributing to mitigation efforts against future public health challenges associated with population ageing in resource-limited developing African nations, wherein the impact of population transition will be felt most.
Keywords: influenza vaccine; solidarity; reciprocity; Afro-communitarianism; decolonization
Authors: Miss Ruach Sarangarajan | University of the Witwatersrand;
Dr Cornelius Ewuoso | University of the Witwatersrand
Biography
She is currently a Master’s in Medicine in Bioethics and Health Law candidate at the University of the Witwatersrand. Her research interests are African Ethics, Global Health Ethics, Vaccinology, and Solidarity and Justice.