...“How can nurses ensure that older people are treated with respect and dignity whilst being cared for in a hospital or in the community?” Providing dignified care is at the very heart of nursing and is the responsibility of everyone (Royal College of Nursing (RCN) 2008). Nurses play an important part in the care of older people and quality nursing care can make a substantial difference to physical and emotional well-being (Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) 2008). 'Dignity' as defined by the Social Care Institute for Excellence (SCIE) (2009) is ‘A state, quality or manner worthy of esteem or respect; and (by extension) self-respect’. Adopting dignity in practice should generate an environment that supports and promotes self-respect, allowing it to flourish by the maintenance of autonomy and informed choice, NMC (2008). The 2006 Commission for Social Care Inspection (CSCI) publication ‘Living well in later life’ highlighted the lack of dignity and respect for older people in acute hospitals as a major area of concern citing that 45% of NHS resources are spent on older people and this accounts for the greatest use of acute hospital services This discussion will identify the specific needs of the older person from a bio-psychosocial perspective incorporating complicit ethical issues. The role of the nurse in the provision of quality and comprehensive care delivery will of course be examined, integrating theory and practice and exploring the implications for inter-professional...
Words: 5778 - Pages: 24
...organizations, and is also a frequent subject of research and focus for policy improvements (Jennings, Runder, and D’Onofrio, 2003). Assisted Suicide Effective health care requires collaboration between patients and physicians and other health care professionals. Open and honest communication, respect for personal and professional values, and sensitivity to differences are integral to optimal patient care. As the setting for the provision of health services, hospitals must provide a foundation for understanding and respecting the rights and responsibilities of patients, their families, physicians, and other caregivers. Hospitals must ensure a health care ethic that respects the role of patients in decision making about treatment choices and other aspects of their care. Hospitals must be sensitive to cultural, racial, linguistic, religious, age, gender, and other differences as well as the needs of persons with disabilities (A patient’s bill of rights, 1992). To participate effectively in decision making, patients must be encouraged to take responsibility for requesting additional information or clarification about their health status or treatment when they do not fully understand information and instructions (A patient’s bill of rights, 1992). Three ethical considerations are autonomy, duty of care and risk-benefit. Ethical questions surround the concept of medical...
Words: 788 - Pages: 4
...years that violent behavior, sexual offenses, and robberies while at school, tremendously decrease even with the undeniable improvement in student behavior, there still is a growing tension between economic production, and political liberation. First in Jan 1994, Long Beach, CA was the first school district in the united states that required school uniforms for all students k-8, also in Long Beach, CA after two years of a districtwide k-8 mandatory uniforms policy, reports of assault and batter in the district schools decreased by 34% assault, 50% fighting, 51% sex offenses with a deadly weapon, and drugs by 69%. However when all students are wearing the same uniform, they are less concerned about others. The second reason is the tension between economic production, and political liberation continues to shape debates about school uniforms, some argue that uniforms increase social order, while others contend they run the danger of violating a parsons right of self-expression, to what degree school uniforms actually do the latter, along with threating a student autonomy,selfworth, and dignities , of course debatable in any case ,contemporary discussions about school uniforms, also reveal deeper concerns about performance, school safety, the maintenance of social order, and the relation between the individual student, and the state. The last reason is the prevalence of uniforms in public schools continues to rise in the United States, as parents, and...
Words: 444 - Pages: 2
...Health Law and Ethics NUR 478 Susan Lawson, RN, MS, CLNC July 18, 2010 Professional Ethics Paper The purpose of this paper is to describe the relationships between legal and ethical issues, identify personal values and professional ethics, examine ethical theories and principles, and apply these to current practice examples. Nurses face an ever-growing complexity within their practice as professionals. Understanding the relationship between legal and ethical issues and how to apply that understanding to every day practice is paramount for today’s professional nurse. This paper will further explore these ethical theories and principles while discussing how personal values affect an individual’s nursing practice. The Relationship Between Legal and Ethical Issues Nurses, as with any job, face challenges in order to accomplish the tasks of their role. This is one of the reasons that it is important to have a description that serves as guidance as to how the role is to be accomplished. Without such guidelines, it is likely that there will be a breach of established rules along the way to performing duties and accomplishing the job duties. In situations where one person exercises authority over another, there are important guidelines that define relationship between the two parties. Legal and ethical principles define how a job is to be carried out and how individuals are to relate to one another. Legal and professional ethics define the liability...
Words: 2093 - Pages: 9
...Emmanuel Okoroafor. Educational Preparation. Grand Canyon University January 2013 Educational Preparation * BSN means Baccalaureate of Science in Nursing and ADN means Associate Degree in Nursing. Both degrees will qualify a student to take the same NCLEX exam for a practicing license. There are different competency levels in these two programs. BSN is a four year university program with focus on knowledge, theories, research and clinical and an overall emphasis on the entire field of nursing. The program tend to expose the student to human diversity, global perspective, ethical, legal, health promotion, spiritual perspective, political, and social influences using liberal arts for a complete understanding of the field(Punturi,2010)The ADN is a two year program with focus on the clinical skills and more task oriented. The ADN program does not go into too much details of different aspects of health sector like leadership, political, ethical, policy and other global perspectives. BSN prepared nurse posess the following competency according to leddy and Peppers Conceptual Bases of Professional Nursing(Lucy J Hood,2010)provide direct care with different nursing diagnosis using nursing process, within allowed parameters, and independent nursing decisions. * A mentored clinical learning situation in both classroom and practice setting helps nurses to apply theoretical knowledge with actual event(Field,2004) In a study by Benner, on competency of nurses the study highlighted...
Words: 1091 - Pages: 5
...The two principles that are in focus are beneficence and non-maleficence. Both beneficence and non-maleficence have played a fundamental historical role in medical ethics (Beauchamp &ump; Childress, 2009). Non-maleficence is often paired with beneficence, but there is a difference between these two principles (Rich, 2008). According to Beauchamp and Childress (2009) conflating beneficence and non-maleficence into a single principle obscures important distinctions. In addition, both of these ethical principles beneficence and non-maleficence are strengthened by state nursing practice acts, which mandate that nurses are legally obligated to safeguard patients and the profession (Bjarnason &ump; LaSala, 2011). Furthermore, it is with great purpose that we discuss the two principles beneficence and non-maleficence and their importance to the nursing profession. The principle of beneficence is concerned with a moral obligation to act for the benefits of others (Kennedy, 2004). Additionally, beneficence is the principle consisting of deeds such as mercy, kindness, and charity (Rich, 2008). There are other forms of beneficence including altruism, love, and humanity (Beauchamp &ump; Childress, 2009). We use beneficence in order to cover beneficent actions more broadly, so that it includes all forms of action to benefit other persons (Beauchamp &ump; Childress, 2009). Overall, beneficence implies that an individual takes action to do good by benefiting others and facilitating...
Words: 2293 - Pages: 10
...DIGNITY IN END OF LIFE: THE ROLE OF NURSES BY (Student’s Name) Course Instructor Institution City, State Date Dignity in End of Life: The Role of Nurses LITERATURE REVIEW INTRODUCTION A literature review is a critical appraisal of researches that provides a comprehensive and up to date knowledge on a specific topic (Coughlan, Ryan and Cronin 2013). The purpose of literature review in nursing includes evaluating current practice and making recommendations for policy development and change. Thus, the purpose of this literature review is to establish the current perspectives of patients, family and nurses on the factors that improve dignity in the end of life. Resultantly, this literature review will explore the role of nurses’ based on the findings of the perspectives that patients, family and health professionals have concerning the issue of dignity in the end of life care. In that regard, the paper follows a systematic approach which involves an introduction that explains the concept of end of life and the types of end of life care available. The paper then proceeds to explore the concept of dignity as viewed from several perspectives through the use of literature on the models of dignity means of measuring dignity and the themes associated with this conception. Consequently, the factors that improve dignity are laid out and discussed at length. Eventually, the paper will achieve its secondary goal which is to determine and expound on the topic of the roles that a nurse...
Words: 10575 - Pages: 43
...Original article | Published 3 February 2011, doi:10.4414/smw.2011.13157 Cite this as: Swiss Med Wkly. 2011;141:w13157 Do not attempt resuscitation: the importance of consensual decisions A qualitative study Lorenz Imhofa, Romy Mahrer-Imhofa, Christine Janischb, Annemarie Kesselringc, Regula Zuercher Zenklusend a b c d Zurich University of Applied Sciences ZHAW, Institute of Nursing, Winterthur, Switzerland Department of Education, Training and Professional Development, Stadtspital Waid Zurich, Switzerland Institute of Nursing Science, University of Basel, Switzerland Department of Medicine, Pourtalès Hospital, Neuchâtel, Switzerland Correspondence: Lorenz Imhof PhD RN Zurich University of Applied Sciences Institute of Nursing School of Health Professions Technikumstr. 71 CH-8401 Winterthur Switzerland lorenz.imhof@zhaw.ch pivotal. Therefore, leadership by experienced senior physicians and nurses is needed and great efforts should be made with regard to multidisciplinary education. Key words: decision-making; multidisciplinary collaboration; end-of-life issue; resuscitation orders Introduction Since the 1980s, “do-not-attempt-resuscitation (DNAR)” orders have become common in medical practice. DNAR orders are given for 50–60% of patients who die a non-sudden death, with wide variations among countries. DNAR orders apply to only 19% of hospitalised patients in Italy, but to as many as 83% in Sweden and 86% in Switzerland [1, 2]. The frequency of DNAR decisions in...
Words: 6472 - Pages: 26
...Ethical Frameworks In Practice When it comes to ethical dilemmas we can all feel challenged with complex decisions that are difficult to make. Ethical dilemmas refer to problems that arise which usually involve more than one moral correct mode of actions involving the individual responsible and the individual correcting the situation. The individual resolving the situation is often challenged by the fact that in either option he takes, he or she may be right about taking one option but wrong about leaving the other. Ethical dilemmas test our ability to use our morals and values as well as ethical principals that we have learned through out life, and put them into actions by weighing these beliefs and being able to determine the difference between right and wrong. For that reason is imperative that nursing professionals are well aware of their own beliefs, moral and values, so they can make correct ethical decisions especially when it comes to health care delivery. Ethical Dilemma I this case we have a 6 y/o child, which gets very sick while at school. The child presents with elevated temperature, vomiting and convulsing. The child is immediately taken to the closest hospital and is quickly diagnosed with meningitis. The attending physician is now requesting authorization to treat the child from the parents. The child’s parents are divorced and now the mother, who is not the biological mother, is faced with the challenge to make decisions about his care. The mother, who has...
Words: 1391 - Pages: 6
...This paper addresses questions of suicide intervention within a broadly Kantian perspective. In such a perspective, a chief task is to determine the motives underlying most suicidal behaviour. Kant wrongly characterizes this motive as one of self-love or the pursuit of happiness. Psychiatric and scientific evidence suggests that suicide is instead motivated by a nihilistic disenchantment with the possibility of happiness which, at its apex, results in the loss of the individual’s conception of her practical identity. Because of this, methods of intervention that appeal to agents’ happiness, while morally benign, will prove ineffective in forestalling suicide. At the same time, more aggressive methods violate the Kantian concern for autonomy. This apparent dilemma can be resolved by seeing suicide intervention as an action undertaken in non-ideal circumstances, where otherwise unjustified manipulation, coercion, or paternalism are morally permitted. 1. The chances are good that each of us will some day confront a person close to us contemplating suicide. Every year in the United States, suicide attempts lead to 30,000 deaths and nearly half a million visits to emergency rooms [1]. This number does not even include another still larger group that contemplates suicide or forms suicidal intentions but never actually initiates a suicide attempt. And for each such suicidal person, there are numerous other persons — friends, family members, and health...
Words: 8969 - Pages: 36
...within the family and often against women. The International Council of Nurses (ICN) (2001) notes in a summary of research done on four continents that as many as 20 to 50 percent of all women in the studies reported experiencing partner violence. But what are the links among domestic violence, health care profession, nurses, and ethics? In moral philosophy, there is a long tradition of debate on whether true moral dilemmas can exist, some arguing that it will always be possible to decide which obligation should prevail. On this concept regardless of the abstract possibility of an ideal resolution and the pragmatic reality that decisions are made and people have to live with them. An ethical dilemma presents a choice that must be made between two mutually exclusive courses of action, each of which is perceived to rest on a moral obligation that carries significant weight for the actor confronting the dilemma. According to Draucker (2002} addresses intimate partner abuse as repeatable and increasing patterns of violence against women by men in their attempts to gain power. She notes that because this abuse occurs in a continuing relationship, or in a newly severed one, the perpetrator may have long-term access to the abused one. Furthermore, she acknowledges the many economic and sociological factors that contribute to...
Words: 14007 - Pages: 57
...Describe the factors that help or hinder person-centred care and interprofessional working in relation to a chosen incident. (Word Count 2,993) In this essay a consultation observed during a Primary Care placement will be described, with the aim of defining person centred care in relation to it. To protect confidentiality and in accordance with the Nursing and Midwifery Council’s code of conduct (NMC, 2008), the names of persons or places are not referred to. The roles and responsibilities of the professions involved, the importance and difficulties of interprofessional collaboration and the effects of this on person centred care will also be explored. A conclusion will be drawn as to whether the event provided a person centred approach. The observed consultation (Appendix 1) took place in an elderly care clinic held in a hospital outpatient department. Outpatients Clinics are provided by the local NHS Primary Care trust on a regular basis as part of ongoing care for clients. A consultant, a nurse, the client and her carer were present. The client had an appointment to review her ongoing treatment of Parkinson’s disease. A publication to support the National Framework for older people (Department of Health, 2001) regarding the implementation of medicines endorses the monitoring of treatment to ensure the medication remains appropriate and to raise awareness of any adverse effects. The lady was in her eighties, frail and hard of hearing. A carer accompanied her from...
Words: 3840 - Pages: 16
...very general and they do not predict behaviour in specific situations very well. * People tend to hold values structured around such factors as achievement, power, autonomy, conformity, tradition, and social welfare. * We learn values through the reinforcement process by parents, teachers, and representatives of religions. Generational Differences in Values * Generations are: 1. Traditionalists 2. Baby boomers 3. Generation X 4. Generation Y * Categorized by different ages, but also distinguished by growing up under different socialization experiences; which in result could cause different values. * Such values differences might underlie the differential workplaces assets and preferences of leadership style. * Some indication that Gen X and Y are more inclined to value money, status, and rapid career growth than are boomers. * Also evidence that Gen X and Y, compared to boomers, see work as less central, value leisure more, and are more inclined toward work-life balance. * Research conducted by the Center of Creative leadership concluded that all work generations share the same values but express them differently. * Organizations may have to tailor jobs designs, leadership styles, and benefits to the generational mix of their workforces. Cultural Difference in Values Work Centrality * Work itself is...
Words: 3520 - Pages: 15
...Nursing is a diverse and dynamic profession, with many layers that influence how care is ultimately delivered. This paper will explore some of these influences, and outline a Professional Nursing Mission Statement, with a keen look at nursing organizations, ethics, accountability, and professional practice. Mishel’s Theory of Uncertainty in Illness will be explained as a support to the mission statement and support of my personal professional practice. Additionally, two personal anecdotes will be shared regarding the ethical principles of respect for autonomy and beneficence. Functional Difference between Regulatory Agency and Professional Nursing Organization The major functional difference between a regulatory agency like a board of nursing and professional nursing organization is that a regulatory agency governs the education and licensing of nurses; actual nurse practices on the job, and discipline if the nurse falls short of governing practices (National Coumcil of State Boards of Nursing, 2015). The rules and regulations enacted by the board of nursing, after public review, “have the full force and effect of law.” (National Council Board of Nursing Nurse Practice Act 2) In contrast, a professional nursing organization is comprised of voluntary groups of nurses which provide educational opportunities, share information, and promote the profession. (Matthews, 2012) According to the National Council of State Boards of Nursing website, each state board of nursing...
Words: 3135 - Pages: 13
...the very beginning of nursing. From pediatrics to gerontology, nurses are serving a culturally, religiously and financially diverse population with challenging needs. In the face of this, nursing itself is becoming ever more diverse in it’s culture and skill set, which is helping the profession stay in the race, and continue to advance the practice of nursing. Although I’ve been a nurse for only seven years, and spent the bulk of my working career for fortune 100 companies in the aviation field, I feel i bring a wealth of business, people-skills and management expertise to the field. I was drawn to the field of nursing for many years, and when I finally had an opportunity to turn to school, I did, and pursued my nursing degree. Helping people was always a goal of mine, and I have been able to fulfill that goal and set new ones in that realm within the world of nursing. My past business experience has provided me with the knowledge to not only provide safe, quality care for my patients, but to relate to families and hospital staff in a clear and effective manner that improves outcomes for my patients. I have also participated directly in reducing our blood stream infection rates substantially, and in eliminating waste and duplicate supplies, which have saved my unit hundreds of thousands of dollars. The functional differences between a regulatory agency (RA), and a professional nursing organization (PNO) as it pertains to my professional nursing practice are as follows. I reside...
Words: 2539 - Pages: 11
