Introduction Nurses Play a Critical Role Assignment 2022

Introduction
Nurses play a critical role in ensuring a healthy society by delivering quality care to
people who need it. In delivering quality care, nurses are guided by the code of ethics which
helps them to make the right decisions about the treatment that different patients need basing on
their respective illnesses and different situations that arise during treatment. This is so because
the code of ethics outlines all the responsibilities of the nurse and the principles that govern all
the decisions that a nurse will make in the process of delivering care to the patients (Grönlund et
al., 2016). This means that all nurses must be aware of the code of ethics that governs their
behavior in healthcare. However, some nurses are not informed of the code of ethics which
results in ethical issues in the process of delivering care. For example, the nurse in the case study
provided despite the nurse confirming that the vital signs of the patient have revealed that the
patient is not mentally well, the nurse leaves the patient alone in the room just to seek
clarification from the shift coordinator. As a result, the patient went of control and almost killed
herself. The actions of the nurse in the case study demonstrate negligence which is not allowed
based on the nurse's code of ethics. Therefore, there is a need to show major ethical issues that
arise in the process of care delivery and actions that should be taken.
A discussion on the legal and ethical concerns
One of the ethical concerns that can be deduced from the case study is malpractice and
negligence. Malpractice and negligence arise when a nurse handles patients under his care in a
careless manner that negatively affects their health (Larson, 2013). Based on the case study the
ethical issue of malpractice arises when the nurse despite carrying out tests that confirmed to him
that Mavis (patient) “seems quite confused, disorientated and anxious” left the patient alone in
the ward as he went to report to the shift coordinator. When a patient seems confused and

disoriented, it means that the patient is mentally unstable and needs the total attention of the
doctor. Therefore, it was negligence on the part of the doctor to leave the patient alone because
the patient went out of control as she smeared feces everywhere in the hospital. The nurse’s
action here is not in accordance with the registered nurses’ first standard of practice which
requires nurses to think critically before making any medical decision about the patient
(Grönlund et al., 2016).
Another ethical concern is the issue of patient privacy. After the Mavis had lost control
and left her room without the permission of the nurse, the nurse located her in the visitor’s room.
However, Mavis’s gown was open and she was smearing feces to her abdomen. When the nurse
saw this she immediately closed the door to give Mavis privacy. This action of the nurse is in
accordance with the nurse’s code of ethics which dictates that nurses should ensure the patient’s
privacy at all times (Israel & Bass, 2018).
The major legal action that comes out clearly in the case study is malpractice charges.
Malpractice charges arise when a nurse handles a patient in a careless manner that puts the life of
the patient at risk. In the case study, the nurse with full knowledge of the patient’s mental
instability left the patient alone in the room. This action by the nurse constitutes malpractice
charges because the patient lost control and almost killed herself. For example, the patient pulled
out the IV cannula and was bleeding profusely which risky to her health.
Another legal action that can be deduced from the case study is harassment. The nurses’
code of conduct dictates that nurses have a right to be free from discrimination and harassment
(Peter, 2018). However, based on the case study, Mavis who is the patient subjected the nurse to
harassment on several occasions. For example, when Mavis had smeared feces and was being a
nuisance to other people in the visitor's section, the nurse offered to clean her. However, Mavis

yells to the nurse and orders her to go away. Mavis's actions in this situation were a form of
harassment and she is liable for legal action.
A discussion on the actions and inactions to be taken
There are different situations that call for action in the case study. For example, when
Mavis refuses to go for cleaning and yet she is being a nuisance to other patients, the action that
should be taken by the nurse is to force her to go for a cleaning. This is the right action to be
taken because Mavis had smeared feces everywhere and was smelly making other people in the
hospital comfortable. However, this action has dire consequences on the part of the nurse
because it's against the ethical principle of the patient’s right to self-determination. The patient’s
right to self-determination stipulates that the patient reserves the right to make a decision about
his health including refusing treatment (Rasoal et al., 2017). Therefore, by forcing the patient to
go for a cleaning, the nurse is coercing the patient which is against the patient’s right to self-
determination. Also, the law is against the patient’s harassment of any kind by the medical
officer. Harassment is said to exist when a nurse targets a patient with behavior that appears to
annoy and torment that patient (Grönlund et al., 2016). By taking the action of forcing the patient
to for cleaning against her will as suggested above, the nurse will be appearing to annoy and
torment the patient which is against the law. This can have the nurse prosecuted and charged
with harassment. But the nurse’s actions of forcing the patient to go for cleaning are founded on
the utilitarian theory which stipulates that any action is good if it makes the maximum number of
people happy (Landry, 2017). Since Mavis had smeared feces all over and was being a nuisance
to everybody in the visitor's section by the smell of the feces, it means that many people were not
happy. Therefore, having her cleaned up will make many people happy since it will eliminate the
bad odor that was coming from her feces. This means that the nurse’s action of forcing the

patient to clean will right since it will make people in the hospital happy. Also, the ethical
principles of beneficence stipulate that the nurse’s action should at all times benefit the patient
(Peter, 2018). Therefore, by telling the patient to go for a cleaning, the nurse seeks to benefit the
patient since the patient had smeared feces all over her body which was not good for the patient’s
health. This justifies the nurse’s actions of forcing the patient to go for a cleaning.
Another major action that the nurse can take is to keep an eye on Mavis in her room until she
calms down. Mavis is not taking instruction that the nurse is prescribing to her and is making
most of the people in the hospital uncomfortable given that she is bleeding and at the same time
smelling bad as a result of the feces she smeared to her body. Therefore, the best action to take is
to keep an eye so that she does not leave her room. This will help temporarily as other nurses
look for a proper solution to dealing with her. However, this action has dire consequences since
it’s against the ethical principle of nonmaleficence. The principle of nonmaleficence stipulates
that the action of the nurse should ensure no harm to the patient at all times (Rasoal et al., 2017).
By keeping, the nurse will be causing more harm to the patient since the main cause of her
behavior has not been established and keeping her down with administering medication may
likely to worsen her condition. However, the action of keeping an eye on the patient is supported
by deontology theory which stipulates that the morality of an action should be based on its
consequences but rather on the series of steps that led to the action happening (Schwartz, 2015).
The series of steps that have led to the patient being locked up are very relevant. This is so
because first, the patient is threatening the medical officers who are supposed to treat her. Also,
the patient has lost control and is doing things that are making other patients in the hospital
uncomfortable. Therefore the best way to deal with this patient is to lock her down.

Conclusion
The role that nurses play in delivering quality care that responds to the patients’ needs
cannot be underestimated. In delivering quality care, nurses have guided by ethical principles
and the nurses’ code of conduct which provides guidelines that nurses require in making the
pertinent decision in their practice. However, some nurses do not understand their standards of
operations which results in ethical issues in the process of delivering care. For example, in the
case study provided, despite the nurse confirming that the vital signs of the patient have revealed
that the patient is not mentally well, the nurse leaves the patient alone in the room just to seek
clarification from the shift coordinator. One of the ethical concerns that can be deduced from the
case study is the issue of patient privacy. Another ethical concern that can be deduced from the
case study is malpractice and negligence. The legal actions that come out clearly in the case
study are attempted murder and harassment. The possible action that can be taken in the situation
where the patient has refused cleaning up is to force the patient to clean up or locking the patient
down while looking for a solution.

Reference
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