NURSING ETHICS

INTRODUCTION

The word Ethics literally translates in English the Greek word ethos which means
customs and has the same meaning wicn the Latin word mores from.which the
English term moral or morality derives.

Usually by peoples' customs, tradition or law-of-the land it means the acceptable

way(s)of behavior which the people identify with and by which they conduct their
affairs of daily living. These accepted ways of behavior or conduct which may be
written or unwritten, spoken or acted, express or indicate both certain ways the
people ought to behave and certain other ways the people ought not to behave.
Hence they are also referred to as the dos and don'ts of the people which in
conduct of their daily living, guides them towards whatthey accept as right and
good conduct and away from what they also consider as wrong and bad behavior.
These dos and don'ts therefore, constitute a code of conduct for the people and a
guide. They also serve as standards or ideals of behavior to the people against which
they assess or evaluate as well as pass judgment over individual conduct within a
given group of people.

William Lillie in (1964) defined "Ethics" as the normative science of the conduct of
human being living in society.

It is a branch of philosophy that deals with the principles relating to right and
wrong conduct.

It also deals with the standards that govern the conduct of a person in a society,
especially a member of a profession.

BRANCHES OF ETHICS
Ethics has two main branches, which include:
1. Meta ethics
2. Applied ethics
ements,
Meta ethics-seeks to understand the meaning of ethical concepts, stat
attitudes and judgment.
Applied ethics deals with the identification of specific ethical problems within a •
discipline's practice and the application of ethical theories and principles to such
specific problems within the domain of that discipline.

SOME COMMON ETHICAL PRINCIPLES USED TO VALDATE MORAL CLAIMS

Autonomy-These entail the ability of an individual to make a choiCe that is free
from external constraints or influence.
Beneficence-This is the duty lto do good and active participation in the promotion of
benevolent acts.
Nonmaleficence-This is the duty to not to inflict harm as well as to prevent and
remove harm. Nonmaleficence may be included' within the principle of
beneficence, in which case noninaleficence would bemore binding.
Fidelity-This is promise keeping, the duty to be faithful to one's commitments. It
includes or involves both explicit and implicit promise to another person.
Confidentiality-This relates Lo the idea ef privacy, where information about a
person or received from an individual is only shared with others after permission
from the person, unless it is felt that the information must be shared because it
benefits the person or that it constitute a threat to social good.
Veracity-This is the obligation to tell the truth and not to lie or deceive others.
Sanctity of life-This is the concept that life is the highest good."Therefore, all
forms of life, including mel biologic existence, should take precedence over
external criteria for judging quality of life,

NURSING ETHICS
This is a form of applied ethics, because IL Dddressus 'oral situations that are
specific to nursing profession and patiei it care. It is a et of moral and practical
guidelines that influence a nursing decision big or 'small. In essence, nursing ethics is
a set of shared values or vinciples -0[11 govern the way nurses interact with patient,
patient's family or ignificani others, the community and other health workers,
IMPORTANCE OF NURSING ETHICS
Nursing ethics is similar to general medical ethics, such as promoting the well-
being of others, respecting the patient's right to have a voice in his/her medical
care and doing no harm. Nursing ethics however, places focus on collaborative care
and human dignity and emphasis on relationships. Ethical guidelines set for nurses
helps define their virtues and provide the best care in the following ways:
Respecting patient's dignity
Respecting patient's dignity is one of the fundamental principles of nursing ethics.
This principle helps to ensure that nurses treat their patients with respect and
allows them to have autonomous choices regardless of health condition, socio-
economic status and personal attributes.
This shows that the need for care in a medical setting is universal, but patient's
care is unique to each individual. Nurses' respect for patient's dignity makes
him/her an advocate of human care and support the patient's physical, social,
emotional and spiritual values and well-being.
Protects confidentiality
Nursing ethics uphold patient's right to privacy and helps promote confidentiality.
Thus, the nurse creates an environment that provides physical and auditory
privacy, along with procedui us and policies that protect confidential information
about a patient. A breach in confidentiality can destroy the trust a patient has for the
nurse. Therefore, a nurse should orgy disclose information regarding diagnosis and
treatment to sources approved by the patient and those participating in
his/her care.
Accountability
Code of ethics for nurses creates a common reference point that sets a standard
regarding the health care set-vices provided. Before receiving a nursing license, an
individual must dem. onstrate he/she has acquired the basic skill, knowledge,
experience, integrity, professionalism and commitment needed to work in this field.
Nursing ethics and knowledge therefore, help ensure a nurse continues to commit to
his/her career,
propriate
Accountability among nurses helps ensure that questionable or inap
actions are reported and investigated so that the risk of harm to a patient is
reduced or eliminated.

Avoidance of Conflict of interest

Nursing ethics help solve dilemmas relating to conflict of interest and personal
integrity.
 Conflict of interest generally arises from, those competing for nurses' loyalty. The
nursing code of ethics helps a nurse to overcome a conflict of interest by helping
him/her to decide how to promote patient safety and protect a patient's interest
while still maintaining profssional integrity.
• ETHICAL DILEMMAS
An ethical dilemma is a situation, requiring a choice between equally ypd Ira

alternatives. It involves an apparent conflict between moral imperatives, in wh c to

obey on& would result in transgressing another:Due to the nature of their work,
nurses face a variety of ethical dilemmas in the course of their carrier.

An ethical dilemma in nursing arises from a situation when a nurse is involved in a

conflict between two contradictory principles, or values. For example, a patient's
and dignity must be respected and a nurse may want to administer life-saving drugs
to a dying patient he/she is unable to do so if the patient refuses the
treatment. The nurse may also be faced with a problem of confidentiality on
weather, or not to disclose the diagnosis of an HIV patient to all persons whose
contacts either through sexua/lneedle sharing behavior. The patient's right to
privacy with the society's need to contain the deadly disease.

International Council Nurses' Code of Ethics

Accountability for pract accepted principle in nursing. In the past
physicians and hospitals assume esponsibility for nurses' actions. However, as
nurses role expand and continue to do so, the responsibility of being accountable
for their action increased and assume increase ethical and legal implication.

The International Council of Nurses in 1953 adopted a code of ethics for nurse
which since that time is being revised as needed to meet the changing health care
needs of the society.
In its preamble the code listed four primary responsibilities of the nurse as:
>To promote health
>To prevent illness
>To restore health
>To alleviate suffering

The need for nursing is universal and inherent in it is respect for life, dignity and
right of man. It is unrestricted by consideration of nationality, race, creed, colour,
age, sex, disability, Illness, Pblitical inclination or social status.

The code of ethics describes the nurses' duty to care for the indiVidual, the family,
the community and thie related groups as follows:

Duty to the patient , ,

The nurse's first priority is the patient. He/she is to create an environment where
the patient feels comfortable. The nurse :s required to, keep patient's information
confidential and provide patient with information needed to make informed
decisions. It also instructs nurses to wofl< cooperatively with others to meet the
needs of the public.
Duty to the practice c_onfintoz_s cr-rm $1)
The code of ethics defines the nurses' obligation to the nursing practice as to take
personal responsibility and accountability for his/her actions. The nurse must
make continuous effort to increase his/her knowledge by continuous learning.
The nurse uses judgment inaccepting and delegating responsibility. He/she must
engage in conduct that is reflective of the standard of his/her profession. He /she
ensure the use of technolo2/ and other practices are compatible with the
patients' care. •
Duty to the profession
The nurse is responsible for the profession by way of ongoing education and
research. He /she must work to increase the core of research based professional
knowledge. He/she is responsible for helping his/her health care organization to
develop and maintain safe equitable social and economic working conditions.
Duty to the co-worker C_.o cAivv=4/._A s
j C VN.ct -R cr,-)
The ICN code of ethics spells orlt the duties of the nurse to co-workers, that
he/she must establish and maintain a cooperative relationship with co-workers in
nursing and in related fields. He/she is to protect the patient, families and
communities. If a co-worker or another professional behaves in a way that might
cause harm, he/she is expected to take the appropriate measures necessary to
prevent harm.

Based on the ethical duties of the nurse as spelt out by the international Council of
Nurses, the Nursing and Midwifery Council of Nigeria produced a code of
professional ethics to inform professional nurses of the standards of professional
conduct required of them in the exercise of their professional practice as follows:-
The professional nurse and the health care'consumer
The nurse must: Pcb-t
*Provide care to all members of the public without prejudice to their age, religion,
ethnicity, race, nationality, gender, political inclination, health or socio-economic
status.
*Uphold the health consumer's human rights as provided in the constitution.
*Ensure that the client/patient of legal age of 18 years and above gives informed
consent for nursing interventions.
*In case the health care consumer is under aged, the next Of kin of the parents
can give the informed consent on his/her behalf.
*Keep the information and records of the client confidential except in
consultation with other members of the health team to come up with suitable
intervention strategies or compliance with a court ruling or for protecting the
consumer and the public frurn danger.
*Avoid negligence, malpractice and asL,ault while'providing care to the
client/patient.