Informed Consent for Medical Treatment Annotated Bibliography Ingravallo, F., Gilmore, E., Vignatelli, L., Dormi, A., Carosielli, G., Lanni, L., & Taddia, P. (2014). Factors associated with nurses’ opinions and practices regarding information and consent. Nursing Ethics, 21(3), 299-313 15p. doi:10.1177/0969733013495225 In this peer review journal article, based on a cross sectional survey conducted in a large Italian teaching hospital, the authors seek to examine nurses’ opinions and practices regarding information and consent and explore the possible influences such as gender, age, education, professional experience, and care setting. The results suggested that though nurses regularly informed patients about medications and invasive nursing procedures and asked for consent prior to invasive procedures, the main difficulties encountered in providing information were lack of time or opportunities and patients’ inability to comprehend information, and the care setting was a significant factor associated with nurses’ opinions and practices. The study is clear and well organized. The research and analyses methods are adequately explained and displayed and the authors provide a thorough literature review discussing previous knowledge on the topic. The results of the study are clearly shown and discussed regarding its implications. The researchers were aware of the study’s limitations and note them in the article. Limitations such as concerns regarding validity, reliability due to using an ad hoc survey, generalizability outside of the hospital setting, and the absence of a parallel study exploring patient experiences. Though it is suggested that further research is needed to confirm the findings for other care settings, this researc... ... middle of paper ... ...re shown by a clear and structured presentation of the combined themes that were identified in the data analysis of the interviews and discuss groups. Limitations of the study are discussed, such as the generalizability of the results due to the study being conducted in one setting. The report suggests further studies be conducted among larger populations in different settings and cultures and the explorations into the views of patients also. Overall, the research provides a respectable in depth look into the role of nurse’s in the informed consent process within a hierarchical and communal setting. The research is relevant to nursing especially in paternalistic settings, where nurses’ and doctors’ roles are not regarded as complementary, and/or when working with family orientated cultures, where the patient’s family has a strong influence on health care decisions.
Nurses everywhere face problems and challenges in practice. Most of the challenges occur due to a struggle with the use of ethical principles in patient care. Ethical principles are “basic and obvious moral truths that guide deliberation and action,” (Burkhardt, Nathaniel, 2014). Ethical principles that are used in nursing practice include autonomy, beneficence, non-maleficence, veracity, confidentiality, justice, and fidelity. These challenges not only affect them, but the quality of care they provide as well. According to the article, some of the most frequently occurring and most stressful ethical issues were protecting patient rights, autonomy and informed consent to treatment, staffing problems, advanced care planning, and surrogate decision making (Ulrich et. al, 2013). The ethical issue of inadequate staffing conflicts with the principle of non-maleficence.
In America, the legal age to sign off on any medical consent is 18 years of age. Seventeen year olds should be able to compose their own medical decisions, and sign off on their own medical consents. Power should land in their hands, accompanied by the professional advice of a doctor. It is your body, be compelled to fabricate a decision without having to have your parent’s signature.
In the medical profession, doctors and nurses run into ethical dilemmas every day whether it be a mother who wants to abort her baby or a patient who has decided they want to stop cancer treatment. It is important for the nurse to know where they stand with their own moral code, but to make sure they are not being biased when educating the patient. Nurses are patient advocates, it is in the job description, so although the nurse may not agree with the patient on their decisions, the nurse to needs to advocate for the patient regardless.
Ethics has been a popular topic in nursing for a long time. Nurses are expected to demonstrate ethical decision-making as well as professionalism. I believe that in order to accomplish this, they need to use the ANA Code of Ethics as framework for their decision-making. It is also imperative for nurses to have a strong understanding of ethics, because they will be faced with many difficult ethical decisions that do not always have a straightforward solution.
The healthcare system can be difficult for clients to navigate and they are often unsure how to access information which puts them at the mercy of others and can lead to feelings of helplessness (Erlen, 2006). Nurses can provide resources to educate patients when they becomes dependent on a health care provider and no longer feel in control of their own body which can lead to fear, hopelessness, helplessness and loss of control (Cousley et al., 2014). The change in roles individuals face can further increase their stress and feelings of powerlessness (Scanlon & Lee, 2006). According to the CNA code of ethics, nurses are responsible for protecting patients from objective risks that place them in an increased level of vulnerability (Carel, 2009). They can do this by providing the resources necessary for patients to educate themselves and be better able to cope with the health challenges they
Recent developments in standard of care and professional relationship with patients have made law fundamental to the study and practice of nursing. At every stage of patients care, law helps bring up to date nursing practice and it is essential that nurses understand the legal and ethical implications of law in their nursing profession (Griffith and Tengrah, 2011). The purpose of this essay is to discuss the concept of consent in relation to the role of the nurse. This will aim at demonstrate ethical and legal implication of consent on nursing practice and professional working. In the Code (2008, cited in Griffith and Tengrah, 2011) the Nursing and Midwifery Council set standards for nursing professional to follow. Among the rules is the requirement of nurses to obtain consent before care is given.
Davis J. Anne Diane Marsha and Aroskar A. Mila (2010). Ethical Dilemmas and Nursing Practice. Pearson
1. Legal, ethical and professional principle frameworks underpin all fields of nursing, and it is a requirement for all Registered Nurses to be competent and knowledgeable, act with integrity and maintain professional standards set out by Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC, 2015). Working with multidisciplinary teams within our profession, it is important to acknowledge and recognise the way in which all the professionals are guided by law and their independent regulatory bodies. The needs of the individual patient is to be considered by doctors and nurses alike, who share professional values and are set out in the respective codes of practice, The Code (NMC, 2015) and GMC (2013).
American Nurses Association. (2015, January 2015). Code of Ethics for Nurses With Interpretive Statements, 1-76. Retrieved from
As a nurse, it is within your role to safeguard the right to privacy for individuals. To ensure that nurses are adhering to this, ethical strategies have been proposed and implemented from a legal and regulatory body.
Efforts are being made for health care professionals to participate in studies by filling in questionnaires so we can better understand the situation in clinics and set better standards for all hospital staff. These questionnaires are good tools to help us understand the situation in each hospital and set a plan. The existing tools in use are SOVES-G-R, POAS and POIS.
Thompson, I. E., Melia, K. M., & Boyd, K. M. (2006). Nursing Ethics: Churchill Livingstone Elsevier.
The American Nurses Association Code of Ethics for Nurses has five elements that pertain to the Principle of Autonomy. Each individual element applies to “respect individual persons” (Baillie, McGeehan, Garrett T, M., Garrett R. M., 2013, p.33). In Chapter 2 of the Health Care ethics: Principles and problems text, it discusses thouroghly the consent of an individual to make their own decisions regarding their health and future requests of care. As a nurse or within all heath care professions, we must treat each individual patient with care, respect, and to remain mindful to the patient regarding any aspect of their lives. In the ANA Code of Ethics for Nurses, it explains ways of maintaining the empathy required in the health field. It further discusses that the respect for human dignity must be a priority, relationships to patients must remain neutral, the severity of the situation, the right to self-rule, and the professionalism that must be upheld by the nurse and their associates.
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
In conclusion, there are numerous legal and ethical issues apparent in the nursing practice. Nurses should study and be as informed as they can with ethics and legality within their field in order to ensure no mistakes occur. Ethical issues vary based on patient’s views, religion, and environment. Nurses are influenced by these same views, but most of the time they are not the same as the patients. As a nurse we must learn to put the care of our patients and their beliefs, rights, and wishes before our own personal