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Chapter 10 Ethical Issues in Health Care

Chapter 10 Ethical Issues in Health Care. Ethics . Study of right and wrong related to human conduct Decisions depend knowledge of right and wrong related to: Individual Society Situation. Nursing and Ethics #1. Nurses Have the ability and obligation to help patients

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Chapter 10 Ethical Issues in Health Care

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  1. Chapter 10Ethical Issues in Health Care

  2. Ethics • Study of right and wrong related to human conduct • Decisions depend knowledge of right and wrong related to: • Individual • Society • Situation

  3. Nursing and Ethics #1 • Nurses • Have the ability and obligation to help patients • Internalize the concept of what it means to be a human being • Accept personal responsibility for relationships • Are obligated to do good and not harm-Nurses have the potential to do good as well as harm, it is important to maintain high ethical standards and to learn about ethics • Are committed to providing high-quality care to all human beings

  4. Nursing and Ethics #2 • Code of Ethics • NFLPN and NAPNES • Purpose is to provide a list of rules of good conduct • Attempt to describe the ideals of a group • Identify standards of behavior

  5. Personal Accountability • Being responsible means to accept being the cause of an action. • Being accountable means to accept the consequences of the action.

  6. Unethical Behavior • Failure to adhere to a code of ethics • Failure to base practice on high ethical standards • Disregard for basic human rights

  7. Ethical Dilemmas #1 • Conflict or opposition between: • Personal values • Moral principles • Laws • Personal and professional obligations such as having to work with a co-worker that may be taking patient’s meds • The rights of individuals and society • No right or wrong answer • Legal versus ethical problems-such as with patient information

  8. Ethical Dilemmas #2 • General Guidelines for Ethical Decision Making • Collect the facts. • Ask questions about behavior. • Discuss concerns with an authority. • Understand your motivation and choose course of action. • Prepare to accept consequences.

  9. Ethical Issues in Nursing #1 • Dilemmas exist when there is the belief that appropriate and safe care cannot be provided. • Choosing between the employer's requirements and what the patient needs: • Staffing shortages • Excessive paperwork and administrative tasks • Cost-containment measures • Managed care • Mandatory overtime • Risks to personal health and safety

  10. Ethical Issues in Nursing #2 • Other issues • Right to refuse to assist with a procedure you believe is morally or ethically wrong. • Cannot refuse to provide nursing care for a patient.

  11. Bioethics #1 • Implications of biologic research and applications Bioethics Committees • Bring all available information and points of view to a bioethical dilemma. • Task is to make a decision about action to be taken.

  12. Bioethics #2 Contemporary Bioethical Dilemmas • Reproductive Issues • Birth control-used to describe methods of controlling conception • Abortion-personal views will determine whether and to what extent you can comfortably assist in matters relating to abortion • Alternative fertilization-artificial insemination, in vitro fertilization, and surrogate motherhood-all also can raise legal and ethical issues

  13. Bioethics #3 • Genetic Issues • Profile can lead to discrimination • Human genome project-is a government funded research project that to determine the arrangement of 100,000 or so human genes and map the entire genetic script • Genetic screening-to confirm a suspected diagnosis, to predict the possibility of future illness, • Stem Cell Research • Embryonic stem cells require destruction of an embryo. This more of a social issue that can be embedded deeply within one’s religious beliefs.

  14. Bioethics #4 • Organ Transplants • Cost for surgery • Cost of lifelong drug therapies • Ethics of sacrificing animals • Religious objections • Buying and selling organs

  15. Bioethics #5 • Death • Criteria for legally declaring one dead- the irreversible cessation of brain function for a given period • Ability to continue biological functions • Euthanasia • Active-to cause someone’s death by intentionally administering an agent  • Passive-to cause someone’s death by withholding efforts to sustain life • Physician-Assisted Suicide-Oregon, Vermont, Washington, Montana, and New Mexico

  16. Bioethics #6 • Death (cont.) • Advance Directives • Living will- a document that testifies that the patient does not want heroic lifesaving measures instituted to maintain life when death would otherwise be likely • Health care proxy-a power of attorney that allows a person to make health care decisions for another • Ulysses Pact-describe a situation in which the decision a person made in the past might not be the best decision for him or her in the future

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