5: Ethical Decision Making
- Page ID
- 111134
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\(\newcommand{\avec}{\mathbf a}\) \(\newcommand{\bvec}{\mathbf b}\) \(\newcommand{\cvec}{\mathbf c}\) \(\newcommand{\dvec}{\mathbf d}\) \(\newcommand{\dtil}{\widetilde{\mathbf d}}\) \(\newcommand{\evec}{\mathbf e}\) \(\newcommand{\fvec}{\mathbf f}\) \(\newcommand{\nvec}{\mathbf n}\) \(\newcommand{\pvec}{\mathbf p}\) \(\newcommand{\qvec}{\mathbf q}\) \(\newcommand{\svec}{\mathbf s}\) \(\newcommand{\tvec}{\mathbf t}\) \(\newcommand{\uvec}{\mathbf u}\) \(\newcommand{\vvec}{\mathbf v}\) \(\newcommand{\wvec}{\mathbf w}\) \(\newcommand{\xvec}{\mathbf x}\) \(\newcommand{\yvec}{\mathbf y}\) \(\newcommand{\zvec}{\mathbf z}\) \(\newcommand{\rvec}{\mathbf r}\) \(\newcommand{\mvec}{\mathbf m}\) \(\newcommand{\zerovec}{\mathbf 0}\) \(\newcommand{\onevec}{\mathbf 1}\) \(\newcommand{\real}{\mathbb R}\) \(\newcommand{\twovec}[2]{\left[\begin{array}{r}#1 \\ #2 \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\ctwovec}[2]{\left[\begin{array}{c}#1 \\ #2 \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\threevec}[3]{\left[\begin{array}{r}#1 \\ #2 \\ #3 \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\cthreevec}[3]{\left[\begin{array}{c}#1 \\ #2 \\ #3 \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\fourvec}[4]{\left[\begin{array}{r}#1 \\ #2 \\ #3 \\ #4 \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\cfourvec}[4]{\left[\begin{array}{c}#1 \\ #2 \\ #3 \\ #4 \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\fivevec}[5]{\left[\begin{array}{r}#1 \\ #2 \\ #3 \\ #4 \\ #5 \\ \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\cfivevec}[5]{\left[\begin{array}{c}#1 \\ #2 \\ #3 \\ #4 \\ #5 \\ \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\mattwo}[4]{\left[\begin{array}{rr}#1 \amp #2 \\ #3 \amp #4 \\ \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\laspan}[1]{\text{Span}\{#1\}}\) \(\newcommand{\bcal}{\cal B}\) \(\newcommand{\ccal}{\cal C}\) \(\newcommand{\scal}{\cal S}\) \(\newcommand{\wcal}{\cal W}\) \(\newcommand{\ecal}{\cal E}\) \(\newcommand{\coords}[2]{\left\{#1\right\}_{#2}}\) \(\newcommand{\gray}[1]{\color{gray}{#1}}\) \(\newcommand{\lgray}[1]{\color{lightgray}{#1}}\) \(\newcommand{\rank}{\operatorname{rank}}\) \(\newcommand{\row}{\text{Row}}\) \(\newcommand{\col}{\text{Col}}\) \(\renewcommand{\row}{\text{Row}}\) \(\newcommand{\nul}{\text{Nul}}\) \(\newcommand{\var}{\text{Var}}\) \(\newcommand{\corr}{\text{corr}}\) \(\newcommand{\len}[1]{\left|#1\right|}\) \(\newcommand{\bbar}{\overline{\bvec}}\) \(\newcommand{\bhat}{\widehat{\bvec}}\) \(\newcommand{\bperp}{\bvec^\perp}\) \(\newcommand{\xhat}{\widehat{\xvec}}\) \(\newcommand{\vhat}{\widehat{\vvec}}\) \(\newcommand{\uhat}{\widehat{\uvec}}\) \(\newcommand{\what}{\widehat{\wvec}}\) \(\newcommand{\Sighat}{\widehat{\Sigma}}\) \(\newcommand{\lt}{<}\) \(\newcommand{\gt}{>}\) \(\newcommand{\amp}{&}\) \(\definecolor{fillinmathshade}{gray}{0.9}\)- 5.0: Introduction
- In the complex modern world, ethical dilemmas in nursing are common due to technological advances, increased life expectancy, and issues like access to health care and resources. Ethical challenges include decisions on prolonging life and resource allocation influenced by factors like age and race. Nurses must apply philosophical principles and clinical judgment to navigate these dilemmas, ensuring safe and ethical patient care. This chapter explores the impact of ethics on nursing practices.
- 5.1: Clinical Judgment and Ethical Dilemmas
- This section discusses the role of ethics in clinical judgment, defining common ethical principles within healthcare such as autonomy, beneficence, justice, and nonmaleficence. It addresses the process of ethical decision-making to resolve dilemmas nurses face, such as confidentiality and end-of-life issues. The section also introduces the Clinical Judgement Measurement Model to guide ethical decisions.
- 5.2: Patient Care and Safety
- This section discusses the importance of nursing ethics, advocacy, and confidentiality. It emphasizes the trust placed in nurses as a profession, highlighting their accountability and ethical responsibilities in patient care. The section covers nurses' duty to report unethical practices and the support provided by professional organizations.
- 5.3: Ethical Patient Education
- The section focuses on ethical patient education within nursing, emphasizing the importance of providing unbiased, evidence-based education irrespective of personal beliefs or patient demographics. It highlights methods for effective patient education, such as using simple language, multimodal approaches, and considering health literacy and cultural factors.
- 5.4: Ethical Challenges in Scope of Practice
- The section discusses the importance of ethics in nursing practice, focusing on the Code of Ethics for Nurses. It covers the application of ethics in medical-surgical nursing, addressing issues like questioning provider orders, cultural and spiritual implications, and opioid use. It emphasizes respecting patient autonomy and collaborating with ethics committees to navigate ethical challenges.
- 5.6: Key Terms
- The text provides definitions for terms related to advocacy, ethics, and health. It defines advocacy as the act of pleading for a cause, ethics committee as a body providing guidance on ethical dilemmas, fidelity as the commitment to uphold one's promises, and health disparities as preventable differences experienced by underserved populations. It also explains health education, morality, multimodal approaches, and self-determination.
- 5.8: References
- The page includes a list of references on topics such as nonpharmacological interventions for heart failure patients, the trusted ethical reputation of nurses, hospital ethics committees, and health disparities. It references studies and articles by various authors and organizations, including the American Nurses Association, CDC, and others, discussing ethics in nursing and healthcare, mental health professionals' responsibilities, and distinctions between DNI and DNR.