Nursing Ethical Dilemmas: A Practical Approach

Applying Ethical Frameworks in Practice
Every nurse will be faced with a decision making dilemma at some point in his or her career. Being familiar with the nursing code of ethics, what is ethically and morally expected in society and how to approach the situations can help make dilemmas less of a nightmare. “The purpose of nursing ethics is to inspire questions and examine what would be the ethically right action in health care situations demanding a choice between at least two undesirable alternatives” (Toren & Wagner, 2010, p. 394). There are many different ways one can approach a situation to reach a resolution, finding a method that works best with the situation at hand is ideal.
The ethical dilemma in this case scenario involves a six

Weinstein’s Model has four steps involved. The first step involves gathering all of the facts including laws, codes and professional knowledge. Secondly, it is important to consider who is involved and consider their values and thoughts. The next step is to generate options which leads to the final step of making a decision (Cooper, 2012). Many other models provide steps and stages to list options, break down dilemmas into parts, apply critical analysis, incorporate previous experience and even reach out to ethics committees. In a situation where time is of the essence like this scenario, a model that provides less is more. Different dilemmas may require different models that fit accordingly to help create the best possible resolution, but for this scenario being an emergent situation and requiring a decision instantaneously, Weinstein’s model is most

We were able to attain a verbal consent for treatment over the phone from the father. We will be admitting your son to the hospital for IV antibiotics and we will keep an eye on him until he gets better. I respect your wishes and religious views, but I am obligated as a physician to provide treatment to your son based the medical code of ethics and based on your son’s otherwise good health. I know this has to be hard for you to hear and understand right now, but we need to do what is best for your son. And even if your son’s father would not have granted us permission to treat this condition, we would have had to go about it another way to get consent to treat him, as that is ethically the right thing to do. I hope you can find peace in the decision we had to make today, and I hope you can continue to support your son as he needs you by his side during this difficult time. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to ask, we are here for you too, as well as your