It is generally the goal of most nurses to provide the best ethical patient care that they can. However, that is not always the case in some instances. It may take moral courage for some people to work up to facing unethical situations. However, everyone throughout history has different ways of thinking and defining ethical and unethical behaviors. This paper aims to discuss how human engagement constructs the meaning behind unethical behavior, or moral courage, when facing unethical behaviors. Furthermore, this paper will look into ethical/unethical behaviors in healthcare, specifically nursing practice, and how they can create an unsafe environment for patients. The article by Guido talks about the moral distress nurses face, especially …show more content…
Moral courage is defined in this article as, “standing up to do the right thing by acting on moral values when faced with known risks to self” (Hogenson, 2015). People everywhere in the world have their own definitions and ideas surrounding the concept of moral courage. And so, this article is significant to the argument that moral courage is necessary, especially for nurses to stand up to recognized unethical behaviors. Nurses show this moral courage when they advocate for the safety of their patients. Without moral courage, people may have worse outcomes in a hospital setting, for example. This article focuses specifically on how and which factors influence perioperative nurses' moral courage in the OR. Moral courage begins when a threat is introduced and requires appraisal. If it is perceived to threaten patient safety, an additional appraisal is necessary to determine the next steps. However, some barriers often come into play, hindering whether the nurse uses the courage to speak up or not. In this article, it was found that nurses required higher levels of moral courage to address a fellow nurse than to address a physician (Hogenson, 2015). However, most respondents in this study indicated that the most important issues are patient safety and the best possible outcome for a patient. This article relates to Guido (2020) because working on moral resilience will help strengthen a nurse's moral courage. Discussing this article with classmates opened my eyes to the possibility that some people fear the consequences of stepping up to a physician or nurse more than others. Other people that I discussed with wouldn’t put time into worrying about consequences when a patient’s safety is in question. This shows that people have their own way of thinking and acting on moral courage in
During week 4, we became familiar with the application of ethics in the nursing practice settings. We learned about ethical theories and principles, which are crucial when practicing in any clinical settings during ethical decision-making and while facing one or multiple ethical dilemmas. Also, we were introduced to the MORAL model used in ethical decision – making progress. The MORAL model is the easiest model to use in the everyday clinical practice, for instance at bedside nursing. This model can be applyed in any clinical settings and its acronyms assist
The classical term for the word ethics is, moral philosophies that rule an individual’s or group behavior or action. The American Nurses Association used ethics to write the Code of Ethics for Nurses with these values and visions in mind: “(1) As a statement of the ethical obligations and duties of every person who chooses to enter the profession of nursing. (2) To act as the nonnegotiable standard of ethics. (3) To serve as an expression of the understanding on nursing’s commitment to society.” (Nurses Code of Ethics, 2015). With our ever-changing society and healthcare, also comes changes to the American Nurses Association’s
Nurses practice in a complex environment. Providing the best patient care centers around moral, legal, and ethical values (Laureate Education, 2012). Ethical, moral, and legal principles must guide a nurse’s professional practice. The purpose of this paper is to discuss the conceptual frameworks, describe a dilemma in the workplace, analyze the moral, ethical, and legal implications, and finally, discuss the leadership affect of my particular leadership style on this dilemma.
Nurses everywhere face problems and challenges in practice. Most of the challenges occur due to a struggle with the use of ethical principles in patient care. Ethical principles are “basic and obvious moral truths that guide deliberation and action,” (Burkhardt, Nathaniel, 2014). Ethical principles that are used in nursing practice include autonomy, beneficence, non-maleficence, veracity, confidentiality, justice, and fidelity. These challenges not only affect them, but the quality of care they provide as well. According to the article, some of the most frequently occurring and most stressful ethical issues were protecting patient rights, autonomy and informed consent to treatment, staffing problems, advanced care planning, and surrogate decision making (Ulrich et. al, 2013). The ethical issue of inadequate staffing conflicts with the principle of non-maleficence.
The concept of moral distress can be defined in a number of different ways. Generally speaking, when individuals make moral decisions about the right course of action in a situation but are unable to carry it out, they will experience moral distress. A man by the name of Andrew Jameton defined moral distress in 1984 as “a phenomenon that arises when one knows the right thing to do, but institutional constraints make it nearly impossible to pursue the right course of action” (Nursing Forum, 2007). Because of their particular position in the medical world and their conflicting responsibilities, nurses are especially prone to experiencing moral distress. Whether they are aware of it or not, nurses are becoming more and more involved in making ethical decisions regarding their patients. However, the doctor’s policy always rules over the nurse and the patient’s wishes must always be respected. The consequences of not being heard by fellow co-workers or having your plan of action overruled by other policies can often be frustrating and upsetting for a nurse. While there is no data that directly connects the effects of moral distress and the quality of care nurses give, it can be inferred that the feelings of moral outrage, frustration, and anger cause nurses to care for patients in a less effective way. A nurse who is at conflict with him/herself and those that surround him/her will experience difficulties in treating a patient with the best care.
Though Kate Chopin wrote her novel, The Awakening, in the late nineteenth century, her insight of such things as love, romance, and relationships is remarkably modern. Through Mr. Pontellier, Edna Pontellier, and Robert Lebrun, Chopin presents her opinions of love versus "romantic love." Chopin uses the Pontellier's marriage to predict the modern view of love and the relationship between Edna and Robert to portray the concept of romantic love. These relationships are keen perceptions on Chopin's part of the attitudes toward love and romance almost a century later.
This paper will focus on two BNUR leaner outcomes (University of Calgary, 2013) relevant to my learned understanding of nurses as ethical decision makers. I will outline the ways that I have seen ethics used and not used in practice, what I learned about ethics and its use in my theory courses and throughout my practicums, and I will reflect on how this understanding will translate into my professional practice moving forward.
Furthermore, nursing action guided by the theory and principles of moral and legal rights complements excellent nursing care. Nurse’s awareness of moral and legal codes helps them control the complicated scenarios encountered and direct the nurses in the best possible action answerable by law (Lachman, 2006). In this essay, the author will rationalize the relevance of professional, ethical and legal regulations in the practice of nursing. The author will discuss and analyze the chosen scenario and critically review the action taken at the expense of the patient and the care workers. In addition, the author will also evaluate the strength and limitations of the scenario in a broader issue with reasonable judgement supported by theories and principles of ethical and legal standards.
Davis J. Anne Diane Marsha and Aroskar A. Mila (2010). Ethical Dilemmas and Nursing Practice. Pearson
Laabs, C. (2011). Perception of moral integrity: contractions in need of explanation. Nursing Ethics, 18(3). doi: 10.1177/0969733011398101
Ethics & Issues in Contemporary Nursing (4th ed.). Stamford, CT: Cengage Learning. LaSala, C. A., & Bjarnason, D. (2010, September). Creating Workplace Environments that Support Moral Courage. Retrieved from http://www.nursingworld.org/MainMenuCategories/ANAMarketplace/ANAPeriodicals/OJIN/TableofContents/Vol152010/No3-Sept-2010/Workplace-Environments-and-Moral-Courage.html.
They provide morals and are used to form what is the best and right action to do. Ethics can be controversial, but the nurse must keep in mind the patient and their morals. The nurse must understand the different positions of what is good, what is right, what ought to be done, the complexity of moral judgment and the obligations required of them (Barbara A. Carper, 1978). Ethics represent the norms of society. Unethical actions endanger social judgment, the patient, and personal morality. Learning personal values as well as moral judgments through actions and personal beliefs helps form ethics in the nursing learning.
The four fundamental nursing responsibilities of promoting health, preventing illness, optimizing health and alleviating the ill are represented in the code of ethics. (Arnold & Boggs, 2016) One can say that the code of ethics are rules that a nurse needs to follow in order to effectively communicate and protect the patients. The American Nurse Association provided the code of ethics to guide nurses to ensure that patient’s care, safety, rights and health are well cared for and well managed. Models like Utilitarian, deontological, and the human rights-based all contribute in answering dilemmas that can arise with a patient. Thus, explaining what some of the code of ethics are, and how the code of ethics influence our responsibilities as a nurse will impact the overall care of the
Ethics is defined as moral principles that govern a persons or a group’s behavior, ethical principles apply to both personal and professional relationships (Webster, 2015). The field of nursing is a profession that has been highly regarded and respected in society. Most nurses enter the profession in order to utilize their clinical skills to help others in their time of need. Those in failing health rely on nurses to care for them in their most vulnerable states, and expect a level of compassion and humanity while receiving care. Nurses have an ethical responsibility to their patients, clients, and their community. Compassion, empathy, and integrity are staple characteristics that nurses possess that allow them to successfully perform their
Moral courage, as defined in ADRP 6-22, is the willingness to stand firm on values, principles, and convictions. It enables all leaders to stand up for what they believe is right, regardless of the consequences. Leaders, who take full responsibility for their decisions and actions even when things go wrong, display moral courage. In most cases, one who displays moral courage is usually taking a stand against something that they know is wrong. Normally, it is not the popular decision. With physical courage, the fear factor is usually physical where with moral courage it is psychological. Often, a display of physical courage makes you the hero, while the same display with moral courage sometimes makes you appear to be the villain.