Nursing Health Care Ethics

This article discusses the ethical issues in nursing health care administration, including drug administration and reporting child abuse cases. It also provides recommendations for reducing medical administration errors and addressing ethical issues.

Running head: NURSING HEALTH CARE ETHICS 1
Nursing Health Care Ethics
Student’s Name
University

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Nursing Health Care Ethics
The ethical issue in case three is the issue of drug administration to patients and the issue
of reporting child abuse cases. In the healthcare profession, there are ethical standards that need
to be followed when administering drugs and not just any approach that the practitioner takes.
Hodgson (2016) suggests that practitioners are legally limited on the decisions that they can
make in a situation thus the need to rely on other professionals in handling different situations
that arise within healthcare. The healthcare practitioner needs to understand the professional
responsibilities associated with the medication, the drug order and the delivery system that needs
to be used. According to the Australian Institute of Family Studies (2018), there are guidelines
for reporting child abuse and neglect cases that practitioners need to follow. In reporting, the
paramedics were supposed to document the incidence at the scene and handover the file to Beth
was supposed to report the issue to the doctor for analysis. However, none of this happened since
the situation of the child was not documented which is a violation of the mandatory policy
requirements. Every drug has its own indications on dosage and the mode of administration to be
used in patients in the case study the urgency nurse draws the prescribed dose of morphine and
then draws the rest of the ampoule in another syringe and asks whether the administration should
be halves. In the healthcare setting, the practitioner is supposed to determine the mode of
administration and the type of administration of the drug and not the patient. The patient is not
informed of the healthcare process and thus requires the professional opinion of the practitioner
in issues that relate to healthcare.
Ignorance or negligence of the nurse can result in delays or other complications to the
patient. Since nurses proactive under a professional license, they need to understand the

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responsibilities that relate to the role that they play and must seek to develop relevant
competencies that meet the requirements of the profession (Salari, et al., 2013). This means that
the patient is entitled to the right drug, dosage and route. Even though the patient may not be
aware of the rights that apply in a particular context, the practitioner is not supposed to infringe
these rights by abusing them but rather needs to focus on ensuring that the patient receives the
right dosage. On the other hand, the paramedics and the nurse needed to take all the clinical
notes of the child to be used in reporting and filing of criminal charges against the parents. The
Australian Institute of Family Studies (2018) requires documentation and reporting of any abuse
and neglect aginst children to ensure that they are protected by the state. when practitioners fail
to document and report the issues, then they compromising the rights of the child and violating
the legal requirements that define the profession. By observing ethical values in handling patient
related issues, the practitioner ensures that the patient receives the right dose leading to the
intended outcomes (Soleymani, Shalviri, & Abdollahi, 2011). Since the nurse is responsible and
accountable for individual nursing practice, then there is need to ensure that the approach used in
medication meets the required standards and upholds the needs and rights of the patient.
Analysis of the ethical issues
Human dignity is a philosophy that requires treating people in a humane way and
ensuring that conditions are put in place to make the approach meaningful. Borhani, Abbaszadeh,
& Roghayeh Mehdipour Rabori (2016) suggests that patients are vulnerable to the practitioners
since they are ignorant in some situations or they can be in a state that cannot allow them to raise
certain concerns about the healthcare process. This means that the practitioner has to uphold
patient dignity at all times by ensuring that they are exposed to the required conditions that will

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not dehumanize them in any way. In the case of Milly she is entitled to the right morphine dose
to reduce the pain that she felt before any other analysis can be done on her. By reducing the pain
and trying to restore her to the normal state, the practitioner has observed the concept of human
dignity to the patient. Human dignity requires that the agency nurse adheres to the right dosage
requirements and mode of administration regardless of the views of the patient. Further, she is
legally entitled to protection by the state like any other child from abusive parents.
Human rights form the moral norms or principles that define the standards of human
behavior that are protected by the law. In a healthcare setting, patients are entitled to the right
drug that meets the medical condition they are facing, right dose, right route and administered at
the right time. Filik, Purdy, Gale, & Gerrett (2014) suggests these rights ensure that the patient is
protected against any harm that can arise from practitioner errors thus compromising the healing
process. Since practitioners are accountable for the healthcare decsionsons and outcomes that
they engage in, then it means that infringing the rights of the patient can lead greater implication
(Seidling, et al., 2013). In the case of Milly, the practitioner was not supposed to ask whether the
administration was to be done in halves since the dose had been prescribed. To treat her with
dignity, the practitioners were supposed to report the issue immediately to the doctor who was to
involve the law administration team to investigate and open criminal proceedings against the
parents.
The nurses in Australia are bound by a professional code of ethics that requires quality of
care and informed decision making as major areas that focus on the administration of drugs
(Nursing and Midwifery Board of Australia, 2017). This code is relevant to all nurses and nurses
are required to ensure that they observe the code of ethics in every process that they engage in to

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avoid ethical dilemmas. The requirements are documentation of any clinical outcomes in the
patient and reporting any issue like the case of abuse to higher authorities. By observing the set
standards, Beth and the nurse can achieve quality outcome for the patient through following the
right administration process and focusing on quality of outcomes and informed decision making.
The board requires all practicing nurses to be licensed as a way of ensuring that they compy with
the regulations of the industry. Nurses who do not comply are deregistered thus making it
difficult for them to work in Australia. This code of ethics ensures that nurses meet the ethical
standards when dealing with patients.
When dealing with patients, principles of healthcare are applied to ensure that the patient
gets the best of care in the process. The principles of beneficience, justice, and non-maleficence
apply to the case situation above. Justice requires that the right procedure is followed in dealing
with the patient situation and administering of drugs. The principle of beneficence requires that
the health practitioner approaches the administration process with the intention of doing good for
the patient (Lawal, et al., 2014). This means that the dosage should meet its intended requirement
of relieving the patient from the pain. By administering a proper dosage, the practitioner ensures
that the patient can enjoy the health benefits of the drug being administered to her. On the other
hand, the principle of non-maleficence requires that no harm should be done to the patient. The
practitioner puts proper mechanisms in place to ensure that the patient receives the intended
benefits of the medical process.
According to the Australian Nursing & Midwifery Federation (2017) the administration
of medicines is a function reserved for nurses and midwives whose role is to promote self-care
and competent practices. Only nurses who are registered and required to hold and administer

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medicines are allowed to administer medicines. This is the reason why the nurse asked Beth to
confirm the mediation before she could administer. This indicates that she was not professionally
allowed to prescribe or measure the dosage for patient medication (Athanasakis, 2015). The
Poisons and Therapeutic Goods Act 1966 in Australia protects the health care community by
imposing limitations on the use of medicines and their administration to ensure that they are used
in the right standards and requirements to ensure that they meet the conditions that they are
manufactured for. By ensuring that only qualified and authorized persons can handle or
administer the medication, the policy protects the consumer against any breach that can affect the
outcome of the medicine on the patient.
Recommendations
For proper administration of drugs by practitioners, facilities need to set standards and
Policies that adheres to the legislations that have been put in place by relevant bodies on the
procedures that practitioners follow. Standards are designed to ensure that the practitioner follow
a certain course of action when handling and administering medication (Glavin, 2010). Nurses
and practitioners who breach such Policies are liable for criminal charges against them. Through
institutional medication Policies, management can regulate medical errors and ensures that
nurses are familiarized with the institution administration processes. Policies ensure that proper
standards are put in place for meeting professional requirements and achieving the intended
outcomes. These policies are also used to determine the tripartite relationship between those who
prescribe, dispense and administer to achieve improved care in the patient.
Another recommendation for reducing medical administration errors and addressing the
ethical issues around it is the use of nursing education to equip nurses with proper skills in the

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area. Practitioners who are authorized to handle medications must have attained the minimum
educational requirement to ensure that they understand the requirements (McMullan, 2010).
Since medical administration is a multi-stage process that involves different disciplines, then
management must be a joint effort of those who prescribe, dispense and administer. Nursing
education ensure that the nurse is equipped with appropriate knowledge and skills required in the
field.
Lastly, there is need to institute proper policies for reporting and recording of incidence
reports for future reference. In cases of assault and abuse, the healthcare system plays a major
role in justifying the extend of harm thus assisting in seeking justice for the victim. Proper
reporting policies will ensure that nurses request for incidence reports from practitioners which
can be used for protection or pressing of charges. In the case of Milly, there is no proper
incidence report from the practitioners that indicates the effects that she suffered. Thus policies
will ensure that such incidences are properly documented.
From the case study, ethical issues in the administration of medicines are important in
ensuring that nurses can administer the right drugs and the right dosage to patients to minimize
medical errors. Facilities need to put strategies in place to ensure that practitioners who handle
medicines uphold the right standards of ethical care and uphold the Policies put in place by the
organization. Although nurses are trained on medical processes and how to administer
medications, there is need for organizational processes to be used in ensuring that patient’s
dignity and rights are protected through following the right procedures and using the ethical
principles of care required for all practitioners. Therefore, in the case of Milly, the practitioner

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nurse needed to have followed the right standards in administering the medication to achieve the
required healthcare outcomes.

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References
Athanasakis, E. (2015). Prevention of medication errors made by nurses in clinical practice.
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Australian Institute of Family Studies. (2018). mandatory-reporting-child-abuse-and-neglect.
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https://aifs.gov.au/cfca/publications/mandatory-reporting-child-abuse-and-neglect
AustralianNursing&MidwiferyFederation. (2017). Administration of medicines. Retrieved from
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Borhani, F., Abbaszadeh, A., & Roghayeh Mehdipour Rabori. (2016). Facilitators and Threats to
the Patient Dignity in Hospitalized Patients with Heart Diseases: A Qualitative Study.
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