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Ethical and legal violations of nurses
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Ethical and legal violations of nurses
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Nurses is a self-regulating profession and are expected to adhere to the standards of practice and account for their professional responsibilities in the purpose of providing safe, effective and ethical nursing care to public. According to the reference document on professional misconduct from the College of Nurses of Ontario (2014), it defined professional misconduct as “an act or omission that is in breach of these accepted ethical and professional standards of conduct”. It sounds a very broad definition. So, what actions are considered to breach of these standards? New York State Education Department (NYSED) provides detail definitions of professional misconduct (2017), for example, practicing the profession while impaired by alcohol
Section 5.4, which is the preservation of integrity, suggests that nurses will inevitably have to deal with threats to their moral or professional integrity at some point in their careers. Nurses should do their best to maintain professional integrity when met with adversity, weather it be from uncooperative issuance companies, an unsound work environment, or from the patients themselves. When working in an unsound or unsafe work environment that violates law or the ANA code of ethics nurses must go through the proper channels to fix the problem. If a nurse feels that a procedure or treatment their patient is having conflicts with his or her own moral integrity and they cannot participate, the nurse must report they unwilling to tr...
...is causes injury or not is an example of unsafe practice. This act could also be categorized as careless or repetitive conducts that puts a patient in danger. Drug diversion is a type of drug dealing, nurses have access to many drugs and it is a part of the nurses’ responsibility to ensure those drugs go where they should, precisely document and closely supervised. Criminal conduct can happen in the work place or on personal time. If a nurse is convicted of a crime, such as Driving While Intoxicated, it could affect their ability to practice nursing. It is out of a RNs legal scope of practice to medically diagnose any patient, order a medical treatment or conduct a medical treatment that has not been ordered by a physician. It is the nurse’s duty to their patient’s to exhibit sound clinical judgment, with in their scope of practice to ensure patient safety.
As a nurse it is our primary job to protect and promote the well being of patients throughout the health care industry. Each nurse has the responsibility to practice faithfully and to uphold all ethical values. These values are outlined and regulated by two very important entities, The Nursing Practice Acts and the Texas Board of Nursing. Nursing Practice Acts, are specific laws in each state that define a nurse’s scope of practice. These acts were first established in 1909 with the purpose of protecting public health, safety, and welfare. Their purpose is to provide rules and regulations that will protect society from unsafe and unqualified nurses. Nursing professionalism is rooted in the ethics and ...
Pugh, D. (2009). The phoenix process: a substantive theory about allegations of professional conduct. Journal of Advanced Nursing, 65(10), 2027-2037. http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2648.2009.05038.x
That is the rising number of negligent acts committed by medical professionals. Failure to follow standard of practice is the leading root cause of the troubles involving malpractice. Failure to assess and monitor the patient, failure to communicate, medication errors, negligent delegation or supervision and failure to obtain informed consent from patients are the top failures leading to malpractice. The American Nurses Association provides scopes and standards that if followed could prevent many of the negligent acts. Duty, Breach of Duty, Foreseeability, Causation, Injury, Damages must be proven for a nurse to be held
The Code of Ethics for Nurses was created to be a guide for nurses to perform their duties in a way that is abiding with the ethical responsibilities of the nursing profession and quality in nursing care. The Code of Ethics has excellent guidelines for how nurses should behave, however; these parameters are not specific. They do not identify what is right and wrong, leaving nurses having to ultimately make that decision. Ethics in nursing involves individual interpretation based on personal morals and values. Nursing professionals have the ethical accountability to be altruistic, meaning a nurse who cares for patients without self-interest. This results in a nurse functioning as a patient advocate, making decisions that are in the best interest of the patient and practicing sound nursing ethics.
According to the American Nurses Association (ANA), (2010) “the nurse promotes, advocates for and strives to protect the health, safety and rights of the patient” (p. 6). Nursing responsibilities should be acted upon at the highest standard and must be based on legal and ethical obligations. Healthcare provider’s perception and judgment of the patient’s well being, as well as taking into account the rights of the patient in every action, is one of the key elements in nursing practice. International Council of Nurses (ICN) (2006) states “The nurse at all times maintains standards of personal conduct which reflect well on the profession and enhance public confidence” (p. 3).
Standards are important aspects of nursing that a nurse must learn and implement every day for the rest of their nursing career. These standards provide for a nurse’s competence in the quality of care they deliver to the public. Standards offer a necessary guidance to nurses everywhere in an effort to ensure that people are treated correctly and ethically. Patients expect nurses to have a general knowledge of the medical realm and to know exactly what it is they –as nurses- are responsible for. Nurses need to have a sense of professionalism that enable the patient to feel safe and secure, knowing that a competent person is caring for him. A lack of professionalism does the opposite, making it impossible for a patient to trust or respect the nurse caring for him. Standards of nursing, if utilized correctly, give the nurse that sense of professionalism the patient is expecting. It insures for the safety of the patient and allows the nurse to provide quality health care that is expected of a medical professional.
Unprofessional Conduct according to the Arkansas State Board of Nursing is detailed in ASBN Rules and Regulations, Chapter 7, Section XV, #6. The section states the following conduct are considered unprofessional. Failing to assess, evaluate, and intervene, Incorrect documentation, Missappropriation of residents property, Medication and Treatment errors, Performing or attempting to perform procedures that the nurse is untrained to do, Violating confidentiality. Neglect/Abuse or failure to report these incidents, Failing to report violations or attempted violations to the ASBN, Inappropriate delegation of duties, Failing to supervise, Practicing when unfit.
Nursing has always been a key career in the health care system. Although it is not often focused on in media and stories surrounding health care, nursing is a career of great importance. If any patient was asked about their experience at a hospital or a care center, many will mention the capability and care that they received from the nurses. The health care system could not function efficiently, if at all, if nurses were not present to perform their part. Nurses are more than just physicians support staff. Of interest in this paper is why people choose to study nursing in university or college. From students just graduating high school to mature student who have prior degrees or education, nursing is a popular choice as a path to study
Registered nurses abide by a code of ethics as set forth by the American Nurses Association. Some of the ethics nurses live out are: commitment to the patient, practice with compassion and respect, accountability and responsibility for owns actions and collaborating with other health care providers (Code of Ethics for Nurses, 2015). Nurses practice the code of ethics on a routine basis by employing the six fundamental concepts established by the Quality and Safety Education for Nurses (QSEN).
NSNA (2003). Code of ethics for nursing students Part I: Code of professional conduct. Retrieved June26, 2011, from: http//www.nsnsa.orgpdf/pubs_CodeofProfessionalConduct.pdf
Professionalism in the workplace in many professions can be simplified into general categories such as neat appearance, interaction with clients, punctuality, general subject knowledge, and likability. In nursing, professionalism encompasses a much more broad and inclusive set of criteria than any other profession. Nurses specifically are held to a higher standard in nearly every part of their job. Nurses are not only expected to uphold what it seen as professional in the aforementioned categories, but they are also expected to promote health, wellbeing, and advocate for patients, but also continually provide the highest standard of care, demonstrate exemplary subject and procedural knowledge, and abide by the Code of ethics set forth by the American Nurses Association. This Code of Ethics includes the complex moral and ethical principles of autonomy, beneficence, nonmaleficence, fidelity, honesty, and integrity.
The American Nurses Association created guidelines for the profession including, a set clear rules to be followed by individuals within the profession, Code of Ethics for Nurses. Written in 1893, by Lystra Gretter, and adopted by the ANA in 1926, The Code of Ethics for Nurses details the role metaethics, normative ethics, and applied ethics have within the field (ANA, 2015). Moral obligation for an individual differs within professions than it does within an individual’s personal life, so the code of ethics was written to establish rules within the profession. The moral obligation to provide quality care include the fundamental principles of respect for persons, integrity, autonomy, advocacy, accountability, beneficence, and non-maleficence. The document itself contains nine provisions with subtext, all of which cannot be addressed within this paper however, core principals related to the ethical responsibilities nurses have will be
Nursing is a profession that blends the rich traditions of the past with the ever changing realities of today's health care industry. Nursing is not simply an assortment of special skills and the nurse is not simply a person proficient in performing these specific tasks. Nursing is a profession. I believe this statement to be true because of several factors. The Title 19 Code for Nurses is titled "Standards for Professional Nursing Practice". The status of nursing as a profession reflects the values that society places on the work of nurses and how central nursing is to the good of society. "By being a professional we imply that the person is conscientious in actions, knowledgeable in the subject and responsible to self and others." (Potter & Perry, 1993, p. 27)