Ethics and Its Complications in the Nursing Field

2012 Words5 Pages

Through centuries nurses were given the title “Caregivers”. Unlike some doctors, nurses actually care for their patients, not necessarily saying doctors do not; they both just have a different way of caring. Yes, doctors cure illnesses, but nurses are just as important because they help with the healing process. Most nurses can have the same exact education or knowledge as a medical physician but the only thing individuals see is a name tag with either the acronym CNA, LPN, R.N. and PH.D. Of course PH.D will get all the credit, seeing as how nurses do not exactly diagnose patients. A nurse could just become a doctor but there are different aspects of each title. Nurses take instructions from a higher administrator, which is sometimes a doctor. What needs to be known is doctors are not the only ones that stress and have rules to abide by. Nurses have ethical codes, daily ethical dilemmas, morals, and ridiculous distress, but some of these examples differ with country, state, and hospital. If nurses are capable, then they should be given the opportunity to make medical decisions or diagnosis in critical situations. A nurse’s role in decision making is minimal depending on the place of work residence. Authors Shoni Davis, Vivian Schrader, and Marcia J. Belcheir’s opinion on Ethical decision making in nursing is “a process that involves making an ethical consideration of a patient care situation” (738-749). It seems like nurses can just cite immediately or take a hunch of what is wrong with a patient, but doctors are the ones that actually do the direct diagnosing. There have been many decision making processes and theories. Each has its own unique concepts and terminology, but all have similar components. It identifies good nur... ... middle of paper ... ...2009. CNO. 2 February 2014 . Davis, Shoni, Vivian Schrader and Marcia J. Belcheir. "Influencers of ethical beliefs and the impact on moral distress and conscientious objection." Nursing Ethics (2012): 738-749. Dierckx De Casterle B., Izumi S., and Godfrey N. S. & Denhaerynck K. "Nurses' responses to ethical dilemmas in nursing practice: meta-analysis." Journal of Advanced Nursing (2008): 540-549. Gallagher, Ann. "Moral Distress and Moral Courage in Everyday Nursing Practice." 21 March 2010. OJIN: The Online Journal of Issues in Nursing. 1 March 2014 . —. "Slow ethics for nursing practice." Nursing Ethics (2012): 711-713. Kearney, Gina and Sue. Penque. "Ethics of everyday decision making." Nursing Management (2012): 32-36.

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