One of the most challenging situations in nursing practice is the necessity to provide ethical assistance and care for patients under the do-not-resuscitate order (DNR) and the members of their families. As it is presented in the case study, there can be misunderstandings regarding the DNR status of the patient and his son’s power of attorney. The role of a nurse in this complex situation is to act according to the patient’s will and guarantee that, in similar situations, the specifics of hospitalization and care provided are understood by family members.
The case study has accentuated the importance of discussing problematic issues associated with delivering care to terminally ill patients or persons undergoing significant and risky interventions. If a patient wants to follow the DNR policy, he or she should discuss this decision with family members, if it is possible (Huston, 2017). The decision of a patient is a priority for determining the medical staff’s actions in this case.
All the required discussions of the risks of interventions and decisions to be applied in critical situations should be performed by family members in advance. This step is necessary in order to ensure that they know and understand the will of a patient (Naghshbandi et al., 2019). As it is presented in the case study, the son could misunderstand his role and possibilities in influencing the situation in relation to his father under the DNR order.
A similar situation occurred in a personal nursing practice when it was necessary to follow the DNR policy despite the decision of a patient’s daughter. The problem was that the mother and daughter did not communicate, and the daughter did not know about the DNR order selected by her mother. Therefore, the young woman was in despair observing the medical staff’s lack of actions. It was a stressful situation, and much time and effort were needed to educate the daughter on the specifics of the DNR order.
The learned information is important to clarify how to act in similar situations that are ethically and emotionally challenging for nurses. The aspects of the discussed case allow for emphasizing the key roles of nurses in such situations. Consequently, a nurse can develop a plan of actions for guiding patients’ families on DNR to avoid such situations in the future and promote communication between family members.
References
Huston, C. J. (2017). Professional issues in nursing: Challenges and opportunities (4th ed.). Wolters Kluwer.
Naghshbandi, S., Salmasi, S., Parsian, Z., & Rahmani, F. (2019). Attitude of nurses in intensive care units towards Do Not Resuscitate order. Journal of Research in Clinical Medicine, 7(4), 122-128.