Introduction
The article by Wagner et al. (2015) entitled “Nursing Ethics and Disaster Triage: Applying Utilitarian Ethical Theory” has been chosen for discussion. The text was published by the Emergency Nurses Association, a reputable source, and the article is peer-reviewed, making it credible. The authors investigate the notion of the triage system and discuss its application in clinical practice during emergency cases.
According to the investigation, the triage system is the conventional method that ensures nurses work according to the ethical and expected scheme. During emergency cases, nurses switch to utilitarian ethics when making their decisions, which is always a challenging process that requires particular abilities from the healthcare professional. It states that applying the utilitarian ethical theory is an example of disaster triage in nursing ethics.
The Triage System in Healthcare
The triage system is the typical scheme according to which healthcare professionals work in the emergency department. However, it only works sometimes in a critical situation, as was mentioned earlier. It is possible to apply these principles to the ethical side of the work and the medical conditions that arise in practice.
The notion of triage supposes the combination of four major ethical rules, including the principles of justice, nonmaleficence, beneficence, and autonomy (Wagner et al., 2015). In an emergency, disaster triage is applied functions based on the principles described as the utilitarian approach (Wagner et al., 2015). In other words, healthcare professionals should make decisions based on practical ethics in the most dramatic situations, which is not an adequate solution in everyday processes.
Challenges of Utilitarian Ethics
The main advantage of the article is the thorough theoretical description of the triangle system, its application in the everyday tasks the nurses complete, and the utilitarian ethics in critical situations. Most nurses need to understand how to apply the principles of utilitarianism during disasters, which is a significant problem in the emergency department. As the authors write, the nurse practitioner should be competent in distinguishing the questions related to the patient’s life and death and not hesitate in their actions (Wagner et al., 2015).
Most nurses tend to delegate decision-making in situations when the well-being of the patient depends on them, which is not acceptable in emergencies (Wagner et al., 2015). The article’s authors emphasize the importance of autonomous decision-making the nurse should have (Wagner et al., 2015). In other words, the idea that the nurse should be the responsible leader in some instances is the main topic of the article that is evident throughout the study.
Research Validity
The research results of the text are valid and based on the qualitative methods of investigation. For instance, the authors support the theoretical claims about applying utilitarian ethics with examples from the clinical context (Wagner et al., 2015). Wagner et al. (2015) pay much attention to the clinical applicability of the research findings, which makes the discussion vivid.
The potential biases of the study include the unpredictable nature of the emergency cases, which makes plans for ethical behavior challenging to apply. In other words, nurses should make decisions on the spot based on utilitarian ethics when the situations are critical. It is a complicated process, so numerous things could be improved using this method in clinical practice.
Moral Distress in Nursing
Solving issues connected with the life or death of other people requires excessive resources, and it is difficult for a nurse to perceive it in the context of conventional ethical standards. Even though they typically guide daily nursing operations, they are also antithetical to the moral sense of the majority of people and most clinicians. Helping and nurturing the patient comes naturally to the nurse, corresponding to all ethical principles the professionals share.
The triage nurse has intense and potentially long-lasting moral distress when disregarding this inclination (Wagner et al., 2015). Nurses can better balance their job responsibilities and personal challenges, especially moral uncertainty that can arise due to the judgments that must be rendered in a situation like this through comprehension of the ethical basis of disaster triage (Wagner et al., 2015). It states that using utilitarian ethics in critical situations is connected with the moral problem the nurse experiences.
Conclusion
It allows the conclusion that the study results can be successfully applied in the clinical context. The implication supposes the development of a detailed plan according to which the nurse learns how to apply utilitarian principles in practice. It is vital to emphasize the need to pursue the ethical rules of the nurse practitioner in all situations. Still, during a disaster, the focus should shift from the supplementary to the issues of the biggest priority.
The discussed article is trustworthy, and the authors provide relevant information. Wagner et al. use theoretical and practical descriptions of the possible situations to illustrate and foreground their claims on the topic. Therefore, it is possible to use the discussed text as the source of information for the subsequent investigation into the subject of nursing ethics and evaluate the nurses’ actions in the clinical setting.
Reference
Wagner, J. M., Dahnke, M. D., Pomona, N. J., & Philadelphia, P. A. (2015). Nursing ethics and disaster triage: Applying utilitarian ethical theory. Emergency Nurses Association. Web.