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The American Nurses Association Code Of Ethics

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According to this case, a patient, who has not told his family that he has been living with HIV and AIDS for 14 years, has been admitted to the hospital for pneumonia. Before he fell into a coma, he disclosed to doctors that he did not want his family to know that he has HIV or AIDS. However, he does have a durable power of attorney, his brother, who has arrived at the hospital. Unfortunately, whether the doctor decides to uphold the patient’s request to keep the patient’s information quiet or decides to divulge information about the patient’s HIV and AIDS to his durable power of attorney, the doctor will have to break an ethical responsibility.
The American Nurses Association Code of Ethics established the ethical standard for the profession and provides a guide for nurses to use in decision making. The code includes provisions as well as principles that serves as a guide that nurses must follow in order to make the right choices at critical times. However, following one provision or principle may transgress another.
The American Nurses Association (2015) includes the following principles:
Autonomy: “Rational self-legislation and self-determination that is grounded in informedness, voluntariness, consent and rationality.”
• Beneficence: “The bioethical principle of benefitting others by preventing harm, removing harmful conditions, or affirmatively acting to benefit another or others, often going beyond what is required by law.”
• Nonmaleficence: “The bioethical principle
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