Essay on Professional Roles and Values

When a person meets the unfortunate circumstance of being admitted to a hospital for an illness they are depending on healthcare personnel to have their best interest in mind and make them better. When people think of who it is taking care of them and making them better they specifically think of Doctors and Nurses. As Doctors and more specifically Registered Nurses it is their duty to have a client’s best interest in mind and always act in their benefit. This raises the question, what guides Nurses to maintain this mindset of always putting the patient first? The answer is their ethical duty, meaning every nurse is guided by ethical theories and principles which help guide them as a patient advocate. It is these ethics that make a

Healthcare professionals have an ethical obligation to respect patient’s wishes. Consequently, many legal and ethical dilemmas arise in healthcare in response to clinical decisions related to the needs, beliefs, and preferences of patients and families. Other dilemmas result over concerns about the integrity, competence, or actions of other healthcare professionals. Preserving human dignity, relieving suffering, equality, integrity, and accountability are essential nursing values (Kangasniemi, Pakkanen, & Korhonen, 2015). Nurse leaders have an

Nurses play many roles in the healthcare field, can have many duties to fulfill under their licensure. It is important for a nurse of any degree, or licenses to know all of the duties that can be performed under their scope of practice. Olin (2012) states, “Scopes of practice are the same for every nurse at a basic level and very different by specialty.” Therefore, it is important to understand the scope of practice, that the nurse is licensed for. A nurse has many roles under the scope of practice that the nurse is licensed under. There are times when a nurse is asked to perform a task that isn’t under the nurse’s scope of practice and guidelines, and it is very important not to fulfill the task at hand if it

The Board of Nursing is a regulatory agency that enforces the Nurse Practice act through disciplinary action, provides the NCLEX for registered nurses to obtain their license to practice in that state and approves nurse education programs (Cherry & Jacob p.71). The Board of Nursing regulates my personal professional nursing practice by the following. I have to pass the NCLEX to get my RN license and keep up with my continuing education units. I have to renew my RN license every year on my birthday to ensure that my license remains valid and maintain safe practice by following the Nurse Practice Act. If I do not follow the Nurse Practice

being selfish, overbearing or taking credit for someone else’s work. It also shows customers and business relationships/partners

The American Nurses Association (ANA) Code of Ethics provides many professional traits that can be incorporated to an interdisciplinary team of healthcare professionals such as compassion and respect, advocacy, accountability for nursing practice and participation in advancement of the nursing career (Cherry, 2011). Compassion is a very important aspect of the nursing profession. It would be very difficult to be a nurse without being compassionate. Nurses demonstrate compassion and respect daily in their work by actively listening to patients’ and family members’ problems and concerns and by empathy when appropriate. Advocacy is a nursing trait constantly used by the entire interdisciplinary team. Nurses advocate for patients’ right of autonomy for decision making in regards to their care, treatments and procedures. Also, nurses are in the best position to serve as a bridge between the patient and the interdisciplinary team. Accountability is so essential in the nursing profession. Nurses are accountable for their own nursing practices and for our patients.

The second provision I chose describes the importance of continued education in the nursing field. This education can be through continuing education credits (CEUs), advancements in a degree, or participating part of a work force committee. Advancements are always being made in patient care and safety; for this reason the state of MN requires 24 continuing education credits every two years. This can be completed through online courses, lectures, conferences, and courses that meet requirements. The hospital I work for also provides emails, bulletin boards, and meetings on any changes or updates that will effect and implemented by nursing staff. Besides meeting my employers and state requirements, I am also currently a student to obtain a BSN in nursing.

Regulatory agencies are government related agencies that are responsible for exercising authority in a supervisory capacity. One example of a regulatory agency is the State Board of Nursing, which is a government regulated agency. The State Board is responsible for the public health and welfare, by assuring that licensed nurses provide safe and competent care. Regulatory agencies, such as the Board of Nursing, regulate my practice by enforcing that Nurse Practice Acts are followed and they also outline standards for safe nursing practice. Another way the Board of Nursing helps regulate my practice is by enforcing continuation of education every year. (Regulatory Agency, 2015)

The Georgia Board of Nursing is responsible for regulating and supervising practical and professional nursing. They also control the types of offered professional education and the practice of those registered with said board. Through the use of certain legislation, they are able to determine safe standards of practice for the nursing community. On the other hand, professional nursing organizations, such as the American Association of Critical Care Nurses (AACN), give nursing professionals the opportunity to further their education post-university. Through the use of professional research journals,

This Code of Ethics outlines specific principles that guide nursing practices as related to their patients, their communities, and to the health care profession. Provision 8 of the ANA Code of Ethics specifically states that nurses, along with other health care professionals and their communities, must work together to advocate for the protection of human rights and promote public health while reducing disparities within the health care system. The ANA also takes the stance that health is a universal right and must be recognized in order to promote and improve health and safety for all (“ANA,” 2015). Provision 9 states that it is the nurse’s duty to promote and communicate these values to the general public and to be vigilant of unjust practices within and outside of the health care system. In essence, nurses must organize and advocate to change laws or policies that promote public health and social justice (“ANA,”

Provision one states, “The nurse practices with compassion and respect for the inherent dignity, worth, and unique attributes of every person.” This provision does not mean you have to love every patient like you would your best friend, but it does mean you respect them enough to give them the level of care that you would want. The second provision states, “The nurse’s primary commitment is to the patient, whether an individual, family, group, or community.” When a nurse is dealing with groups or persons, a nurse is going to deal with the idea of justice. Sometimes, resources can be limited and a nurse will have to deal with how to manage or distribute those resources. Another Issues that can arise with this code of ethics is when a patient’s wishes do not align with the care. It is the nurse’s duty to work with the patient to resolve

Provision two, four, and six are a few ethical principles relevant and applicable to the situation. The healthcare team respected the clients wishes, committed to the client’s health, took accountability for care and practice, and contributed to the healthcare environment. Provision Two: Primary commitment is to the patient, whether an individual, family, group, community, or population. Provision Four: Authority, accountability, and responsibility for nursing practice; makes decisions; and takes action consistent with the obligation to promote health and to provide optimal care. Provision Six: Through individual and collective effort, establishes, maintains, and improves the ethical environment of the work setting and condition of the employment that are conductive to safe, quality healthcare. (Hegge, 2015).

Nurses are in position to face challenging situation in determination of maintaining the scope of nursing practice. Nurses must identify the barriers within work related factors to eliminate them accordingly by proper communication among interdisciplinary team members. Among the Four Key RN Roles, regarding statement on advocacy that “RN as Advocate As advocates, all RNs are involved to speak and act on behalf of patients, families, and communities they serve to positively influence the systems which provide care” (Williams, Baker, Evans, Lucatorto, Moss, O'Sullivan, & ... Zittel, 2016).Moreover RNS as Collaborative Leader to engage in activities with other interprofessional in helping the patient, families, and communities to create positive

This ethical principle demonstrates a nurse’s duty to ensure that any and all decisions made, are for the benefit of the patient. After assessing what the parents were able to comprehend, Christina was able to decide that the parents needed more straightforward information about their daughter’s current status before they could make an informed decision. Nurse Christina contacted Ruby’s physician and requested that he come and discuss her current status once more with her

When caring for patients, nurse practitioners must incorporate ethical knowledge in practice. Ethics addresses morals, advocates doing the right thing, and encourages providers to act appropriately (Epstein & Turner, 2015). Not only do ethical issues arise from bedside dilemmas, but ethical issues can also stem from problems at the organizational level. The code of ethics can help guide the levels of direct and non-direct patient care for the NP (Epstein & Turner, 2015). Legal considerations that are important to the NP and clinical practice are the following: a) negligence, b) breach of duty, c) informed consent and refusal, d) battery, e) confidentiality, and f) patient autonomy.