Nursing Ethics and Values



Nursing Ethics and Values

Introduction

The paper intends to expound the role of nursing ethics and values in dealing with the patients as the fundamental responsibility of nurses is to provide the direct care to the diverse patients within the health care institutions. This makes it important for the nurses to adhere with the ethical codes and conducts during the decision making process. This is because, nurses have to make numbers of ethical decisions pertinent to patients' confidentiality, meeting standards of practice, and supporting the patients.

The paper reflects the case scenario of Mrs. Z who has been diagnosed with the breast cancer but she does not want her family to know about her condition. In this concern, she asks her physician and nurse to not to share this news with her family. However, her husband becomes too puzzled as she did not share anything with him which caused Mr. Z to discuss the situation with his colleague Dr. J who then asks nurse to provide him with the records of Mrs. Z. This situation brings the concern of confidentiality on the part of nurse and the physician as the patient disallowed them to communicate her condition with anyone. This situation makes the confusion as the physician and nurse want to adhere with the professional standards and confidentiality but at the same time, they want Mrs. Z to get the best care to recover in the shortest possible time.

Discussion

Ethics is concerned with right and wrong however, in the nursing profession, it is concerned with delivering the skilled professional care to the diverse patients. Therefore, it requires nurses to appreciate the value of ethics in dealing with the patients wherein they must understand the concept, principles, and theories of ethics to apply in the clinical nursing practice (Chaloner, 2007). The ethical theories have the great importance in nursing as the utilitarianism theory is based on the guiding principle of utility. According to which the actions must be based on the greatest happiness principle that can produce the great amount of happiness to the greatest number of people. This principle can be applied over the nursing as to select the alternatives that results in the greatest amount of pleasure or satisfaction and the least amount of pain. Hence, this theory indicates the moral rightness of the action which has been examined by its outcomes. The deontological theory argues that some decisions are inherently right and wrong regardless of their outcomes (Lachman, 2006). However, this theory is purely based moral reasons and justified actions. For instance, deceiving the patient is wrong regardless of the positive outcomes it may generate or the patient could not find the deception. This represents the universal morals to apply in all situations (Jech, 2013). The deontological theory suggests in the light of nursing as the human life has value, all people have equal value, and people must never be treated as means but as ends. Hence duty and justice as the underlying principles to be followed ...