Code of Ethics - Nursing

Nursing is a career that is governed by a set of ethical principles. The duties of a nurse consist of care and support and its important that nurses are aware of their professional ethics. These principles are put into place to uphold and maintain moral values in healthcare. The American Nurses Association (ANA) code of ethics for nurses consists of nine provisions, outlined in the Code of Ethics for nurses with Interpretive Statements. These provisions are constructed to blueprint the role and responsibilities of a nurse. The chosen provisions being discussed will refer to the three main principles of patient autonomy, patient confidentiality, and patient rights.

A nurse owes a duty to her profession's own code of ethics. Patient autonomy, justice, and respect for patients' dignity are central to nursing practice. The Canadian Nurses' Association (CNA), through the publication of the codes of ethics for nurses, calls upon nurses to

As the nursing profession progresses throughout the years, its nature becomes more complex in meeting the professional standards and codes of ethics that are required by all nurses. The American Nurses Association has a specific code of ethics that each nurse should follow and adopt as their own beliefs. The public and the patients should be the priority when providing care in the healthcare setting. The knowledge and education that nurses’ gain is valuable and allows them to encourage health, avoid illness, restore health, and aid in coping for those who are all ill. (LeMone, pp.192) Given that the code of ethics is put into place, there are many registered nurses who violate these codes in various situations. The following will discuss

One of the many roles of the nurse, in caring for their patient, is to advocate for the patient. The nurses in the clip did not exhibit this professional role, the nurses were hesitant in following the physician’s orders, but none of the nurses spoke up on the patient’s behalf. Nurses are often in the best position to communicate with team members and the patient’s family on behalf of the patient, because in most cases, the nurse provides the most interpersonal contact with the patient.

The American Nurses Association (ANA) has the Code of Ethics which holds Nurses to the codes or provisions of these documents. I summarized Provision 1 of the ANA 's Code of Ethics. I give a scenario where this provision is broken by the nursing staff and consequences of doing so. Provision 1: Provision 1 reads as follows “The nurse, in all professional relationships, practices with compassion and respect for the inherent dignity, worth, and uniqueness of every individual, unrestricted by considerations of social or economic status, personal attributes, or the nature of health problems” (American Nurses Association 2001). Provision 1 is divided into five subdivisions. Provision 1.1 is titled “Respect for human dignity"(ANA 2001). The nurse always needs to place value on their patient as a unique individual. Provision 1.2 is titled “Relationships to patients” (ANA 2001). As a nurse you need to leave all prejudice, personal beliefs, and convictions out of the care of your patient. The patient’s self-worth and value is not defined by their religious choice, culture, lifestyle, hygiene, financial status, sex, and race. The nurse needs to form or follow an individual treatment plan that fits your patient’s personal preferences, religious beliefs, and requests. Provision 1.3 reads as follows “The nature of health problems” (ANA 2001). A nurse is not to judge or look down upon a patient by their "The disease, disability, or functional status “(ANA 2001).The nurse needs

A nurse is given an opportunity to help patients, either if its by helping them through a very serious sickness or just helping a patient get to the bathroom on time, or a time when happiness is overfilling the room and a child is being born. Registered nurses provide a wide variety of patient care services (Mitchell, p.12). A Nurse must always know where to begin and where to stop, as any other career in the health field there is always something that cannot be done by everyone but only the certified person, a nurse must always remain inside her scope of practice to prevent any misunderstandings. A nurse must also follow a code of ethics , the code of ethics of the American Association of Medical Assistants states that a nurse should at all times render service with full respect and dignity of humanity, respect confidential information obtained by a patients file, uphold the honor and high principles the profession and accept its discipline, and last but not least always want to improve her services to better serve the health and well being of the community. (Mitchell, p.65).

Nursing is not an easy job and those who chose it as their profession are truly special people. Nurses are confronted with ethical decisions that need to be made on a daily basis. Often they know the right thing to do but because of circumstances like institutional structure and conflicts with others, obstacles are created and distress ensues (Jenner, 2001). It is during times like these that nurses must rely on the training that they have received as well as the code of ethics that has been set down for their profession in order to do the right thing.

If Lisa has been fully counseled and educated about all facets of terminating her pregnancy because her fetus has been diagnosed with Cystic Fibrosis (CF), the nurse’s role is to support Lisa’s decision. The American Nursing Association Code of Ethics (2015), Provision 1.4, The Right of Self-Determination, states that in order to fully distinguish a person’s dignity, it is necessary to respect their right of self-determination. This provision additionally states that it is the responsibility of the nurse to educate the patient accurately and verify that the information is understood. After which, the patient has the right to make their decision without “duress, undue influence or coercion” and be supported “throughout the decision making and

Nursing means being aware of patient’s beliefs, wants, and backgrounds without holding judgement or enforcing one’s own beliefs onto another. Nurses are supposed to be open-minded and put patients before themselves. In this situation, following the code of ethics in my practice allows me to act appropriately within my scope of practice. Treat the patient without any bias and ensure that they are supported, cared for, educated in their options, and ultimately

Truth-telling is an important issue within the nurse-patient relationship. Nurses make decisions on a daily basis regarding what information to tell patients. The specific issue in question is whether a nurse should abide by the Code of Ethics for Nurses by revealing the truth to the patient or refrain from telling the truth to the patient because they are respecting the wishes of the patient’s family. Nurses and health care professionals should always tell the truth to their patients unless the patient forgoes their rights to autonomy or cannot think for themselves. By providing the patient with the truth, they allow the patient to come to terms with their conditions and give them the options for further treatment.

Code of Ethics in nursing it is important to make sure the staff and patients are being respected and treated with dignity. The study of ethics has lead to basic concept such as justice and fidelity, autonomy, beneficence and nonmaleficence. It is very important to understand these concepts, because they assist the nurse with making decisions during difficult situations (ANA, 2001, p 6).

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

Ethics is an essential aspect of health care practice and those working in the nursing profession are often subject to frequent ethical dilemmas. It is essential for all nurses to be aware of the importance of ethics in health care and to practice within the ethico-legal parameters that govern the profession. However, while this is relatively easy in theory, ethics is not a black and white subject and often one’s culture, upbringing, attitudes and beliefs can influence what one views as ethical and this can therefore influence practice. This report will discuss the importance of ethics in nursing practice. The definition of ethics will firstly be presented followed

While you are in nursing school, you are taught the three basic ethical principles that are involved when providing patient care; respect, beneficence, and justice. These three basic ethical principles should always be considered when conducting research studies involving any human subjects. Even further consideration should be taken when conducting research studies involving specific vulnerable populations, such as the mentally-disabled.

Many people make moral decisions that directly correlate with their religious beliefs. Therefore, religion is an important component in bioethics. The Nursing code of ethics encourages nurses to practice with an open mind. Provision one states, “The nurse practices with compassion and respect for the inherent dignity, worth, and personal attributes of every person, without prejudice” (Fowler, 2008). Within a single faith tradition, there may be variations in views and opinions.