Ethics what a dilemma.  So this week we are looking at ethics in business in MGT 500, but I want to focus on ethics in nursing.  Though it is argued that nursing is a business, I am looking more at the act of nursing.  As I nurse for the past 14 years I have had my fair share of ethical dilemmas come across my path, especially since I work in the obstetrics and pediatric fields.  I have had people ask me about abortions and experimental treatments that could be done and I always say "I can't make that decision for you."  I feel like making choices that are ethically challenging must be made by the person or people it affects most.  I don't feel that it is my place to tell someone they should have experimental treatments done, that is something they need to decide. 

An article by Ulrich, Taylor, Soeken, O'Donnell, Farrar, Danis, & Grady (2010) talks about the ethical dilemmas that nurses face every day.  The top five issues that nurses noted most were: protecting patient rights, autonomy and informed consent for treatment, staffing patterns, advanced care planning, and surrogate decision making.  All of these issues come up in nursing often, but the one that I find most challenging is the topic of end of life care.  I have had experience with this on both sides of the topic as a nurse and as a family member.  As a nurse I give the information to the family and let them make the decision, but when I had to help decide whether to put my mom in hospice that was one of the worse decisions I ever had to make.  Sometimes knowing too much can be a curse. 

A less severe look at ethics would be taking a look at things like leaving work early when the boss is not around or taking home supplies from work for your own household use.  As a manager I have to trust that those I supervise are ethically and morally able to make good decisions when it comes to things like this.  I am not with my staff all the time because they are housed in different buildings, so I don't know for sure that they come in on time and leave on time.  I have told them many of times that I just have to trust that they are doing the right things, but if I find out that they are not then there will be some changes made to the process we currently have.  Fortunately I have had no issues in the 2 years I have been supervising them and I hope I never do.  I do think it is important to let staff know that you trust them and that they are accountable for their own actions.  This may backfire one day but I am hopeful that it will not.

References:
Ulrich, C., Taylor, C., Soeken, K., O'Donnell, P., Farrar, A., Danis, M., & Grady, C. (2010). Everyday ethics: ethical issues and stress in nursing practice. Journal Of Advanced Nursing, 66(11), 2510-2519. doi:10.1111/j.1365-2648.2010.05425.x