Nurses’ Ethics: The Main Principles

The scenario in which the doctor does not allow the patient to ask questions about the treatment or procedures performed on his body concerns autonomy and justice. The first principle of nurses’ ethics involves that all patients have rights to know about the possible risks and consequences of the procedure since it is they who decide whether they will agree to it (American Nurses Association, 2015). There may not be friendly trust between the doctor and the patient. The patient must be provided with all the information to get acquainted with the details of his treatment. He is not obliged to give his body for medical experiments, so if a patient does not trust the treatment, he can always refuse it. The principle of autonomy stands for the freedom of patients to dispose of their bodies and be fully responsible for the consequences of operations, procedures, and treatments in general. Patients, harming their health, or receiving treatment, in any case, are irrevocably accountable for their bodies.

The principle of fairness is less explicit in this scenario than autonomy. Still, it is relevant if the patient is undergoing a procedure with others as part of an experiment, joint treatment, or diagnosis (American Nurses Association, 2015). If it is not possible to notify all patients involved in the procedure equally, then it is worth postponing the notification or signing papers with patients that they will not be given information. Sometimes, a detailed description of the procedure may violate the principle of confidentiality, which is considered one of the fundamental principles in medical practice. This is possible, for example, if the procedure is performed not surprisingly, but in a team of patients or based on the experience of treating a recent patient. The procedure is possibly based on the treatment of another person living in the next wing or recently discharged from the hospital. Then it is better to keep silent about some details of the procedure to maintain confidentiality.

Reference

American Nurses Association. (2015). Code of etchics for nurses. Silver Spring, Maryland.

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