Ethics, Law, Economics, Policy

 

   Purpose of Assignment

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        The purpose of the assignment is to provide the student with an opportunity to analyze an ethical issue in healthcare. An ethical decision-making model will be used along with the application of ethical principles and the American Nurses Association (ANA) Code of Ethics for Nurses.

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   Student Approach to Assignment

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            As the intensive care unit nurse, I work with critically ill patients and their families. My unit recovers patients after various open heart and vascular surgeries. Some patients recover quickly; others encounter complications and require additional interventions, which prolongs hospitalizations. At times, patients become so sick that they cannot make any care decisions for themselves, and families assume responsibility for speaking up on the patient’s behalf. So more often, healthcare teams face challenges when it comes to plans of care and end-of-life decisions due to various cultural and personal family beliefs. When various ethical dilemmas collide, more questions arise than anyone has answers. It becomes difficult to identify who is the right person to listen what should the healthcare team do for the patient. In this assignment, I analyzed the ethical issue of a prevailing situation, researched the ethical concerns, and debated the possible resolution.

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   Reason for Inclusion of this Assignment in the Portfolio 

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              This assignment supports my ability to consider several points of view and objectively allocate a solution to the issues. Nurses must be able to provide unbiased care to patients even if they disagree with the patient’s decision. Moreover, nurses should acknowledge patients’ wishes and make family members aware of and honor them.