Ethics in Nursing Cases, Principles, and Reasoning

by Benjamin, Martin; Curtis, Joy

• ISBN13: 9780195380224
• ISBN10: 0195380223
• Edition: 4th
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2010-02-08
• Publisher: Oxford University Press

Summary

Starting with detailed cases based on real life, the fourth edition of Ethics in Nursing introduces the principles, concepts, and reasoning needed to think them through. Changes in this edition reflect important developments in nursing, ethical theory, and nursing ethics. Among the expanded set of 64 cases, 22 have been significantly revised and 15 are entirely new. Reasoning skills and philosophical understanding are explained and illustrated in cases involving: nurses and clients; inter-professional relationships; personal responsibility for institutional and public policy; and cost containment, justice, and rationing. New material on ethical theory includes an illustrated explanation and defense of moral pluralism, a section on the ethics of care, and an expanded discussion of reflective equilibrium as a method of ethical reasoning. New topics include pandemics and care for SARS patients, elderly patients contemplating suicide, and workplace violence. As with previous editions, both the nursing and philosophical content are self-contained, making the book accessible to readers with little or no background in either. Ethics in Nursing provides practicing and student nurses with a useful introduction to the identification and analysis of ethical issues that reflects both the special perspective of nursing and the value of systematic philosophical inquiry.

Author Biography

Martin Benjamin is Emeritus Professor of Philosophy, Michigan State University
Joy Curtis is Professor of Nursing and University Ombudsman, Michigan State University

Table of Contents

Cases xiii
Moral Dilemmas and Ethical Inquiry	p. 3
Moral dilemmas in nursing	p. 3
Ethical codes: uses and limitations	p. 6
The fundamental question of morality	p. 10
Ethical inquiry	p. 11
Ethical autonomy and institutional-hierarchical constraints	p. 22
Unavoidable Topics in Ethical Theory	p. 27
Basic ethical principles	p. 28
Comprehensive ethical theories	p. 38
Moral pluralism	p. 40
A comprehensive ethics of care?	p. 42
Ethical reasoning	p. 44
Ethics, law, and religion	p. 51
Nurses and Clients	p. 56
Parentalism	p. 58
Deception	p. 69
Confidentiality	p. 77
Personal risks and professional obligations	p. 83
Conflicting claims	p. 89
Recurring Ethical Issues in Interprofessional Relationships	p. 94
Conflicts between nurse and other health care providers	p. 94
Nurse autonomy	p. 107
Collaboration	p. 118
Integrity-preserving compromise	p. 122
Conscientious refusal	p. 126
Determining responsibility	p. 134
Ethical Dilemmas Among Nurses	p. 138
Tensions between nurses	p. 138
Respect for persons	p. 146
Professional obligations	p. 150
Administrative dilemmas	p. 158
Personal Responsibility for Institutional and Public Policy	p. 166
The scope of individual responsibility	p. 166
Institutional policies and strikes	p. 170
Institutional ethics committees	p. 178
Blowing the whistle	p. 182
Public policy: advance directives	p. 188
Public policy: workplace violence	p. 192
Putting it all together	p. 193
Cost Containment, Justice, and Rationing	p. 197
Cost containment and the claims of justice	p. 199
Access to care	p. 205
The concept of rationing	p. 207
The Oregon proposal	p. 208
Toward ethical rationing	p. 213
Rationing and the importance of nursing care	p. 219
The expanding scope of nursing ethics	p. 221
The International Council of Nurses Code of Ethics for Nurses	p. 225
The Patient Care Partnership: Understanding Expectations, Rights, and Responsibilities	p. 229
Cases for Analysis	p. 233
Notes	p. 249
Suggestions for Further Reading	p. 269
Index	p. 275
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