Introduction to Ethics in Healthcare

Introduction to Ethics

• Critical care nurses face ethical and legal dilemmas related to procedures such as informed consent.
• Ethical dilemmas are often by-products of advanced medical technologies.
• Ethics defines what is right or wrong.
• Bioethics involves using ethics to solve healthcare problems.
• Making ethical decisions requires aligning choices with ethical principles.
• A code of ethics acts as a guide for individuals and groups to make decisions regarding ethical issues.

Ethical Issues/ Dilemmas

• Ethical dilemmas arise when there are conflicting moral claims that we either do not know how to resolve, do not agree on how to resolve, or cannot find a satisfactory resolution.
• Critical care nurses face ethical issues regarding informed consent, confidentiality, withholding or withdrawing treatment, organ and tissue transplantation, and resource allocation in healthcare.

Ethical Decision Making

• Ethical dilemmas threaten patients' rights.
• The primary ethical obligation of professional nurses is to protect their patients' basic rights.
• Ethical decision making involves determining right from wrong in situations where clear distinction is not readily available.
• Ethical Decision Making Steps:
  • State the dilemma
  • Collect, analyze, and interpret the data
  • Consider choices of action
  • Analyze advantages and disadvantages
  • Make the decision

Ethical Principles

• Autonomy: The right of self-determination concerning medical care.
• Beneficence: The obligation to do good for the patient.
• Nonmaleficence: The obligation to not intentionally harm.
• Justice: The fair distribution of healthcare resources.
• Veracity: The truthfulness, the patient's right to know.
• Confidentiality: Respect for the patient's right to control their information.

Legal Accountability in Nursing

• Nurses in critical care have legal responsibilities to patients.
• Nurses should stay aware of evolving case law and judicial trends to prevent negligence and malpractice.
• Negligence is the failure of a person to act in a reasonable manner.
• Elements of a Malpractice Claim:
  • The nurse had a specific professional duty to the patient.
  • The nurse did not carry out his or her duty.
  • The nurse caused injury to the patient
  • The patient's injury resulted from the nurse's negligent action.
• Informed consent is based on the principle that competent adults have the right to self-determination, enabling them to decide whether to accept or reject medical treatment.
• Elements of Informed Consent:
  • Capacity: The individual's ability to understand information regarding a proposed medical intervention.
  • Voluntariness: Ensures that consent is given without coercion.
  • Information: Includes:
    • Diagnosis of the patient's health problem and condition
    • Nature, duration, and purpose of the proposed treatment or procedure
    • Probable outcome of any medical or nursing intervention
    • Benefits of medical or nursing intervention
    • Potential risks that are generally considered hazardous or common
    • Alternative treatments and their feasibility

This quiz explores the ethical and legal dilemmas faced by critical care nurses, focusing on issues such as informed consent and resource allocation. It delves into bioethics, ethical decision-making, and the importance of a code of ethics as a guide in resolving conflicts. Test your knowledge on how ethics intersect with medical technologies and patient rights.