Article 2 - Summary
Christine Mahsetky
Rose State College Disclaimer
The e-mail address of Connie M. Ulrich, although provided in the original publication will not be contacted for permission to write this summary. Therefore, let it be known that I, Christine Mahsetky, student of Noelle Merchant and Rose State College, do so still choose to go forth with this assignment without prior consent. Objective
The content of this paper summarizes the publication, "Everyday Ethics: Ethical Issues and Stress in Nursing Practice.” Everyday Ethics is a published report on the results of stress research on nurses in the four regions of the United States. The study was a self-assessment survey, sent out by mail in 2004 to …show more content…
Over seventy-percent disclosed ethical issues about which they could do nothing. One-third of these Registered Nurses, in the United States of America, working in direct patient care for American citizens ultimately reported feelings of powerlessness. Non-profit institutions claimed surrogate decision-making, provider rights and duties, end-of-life care and staffing concerns as their ethical issues encountered with most frequency. (Ulrich, 2010, p. 5).
Analysis
Correlations showed that ethical issues were often tied to the subjects age and level of expertise. Predominately, the less experienced, but youthful, nurses were under the most pressure and stress overall. Additionally, those respondents employed in direct patient care facilities showed indications of high or excessive stress correlated with provider rights and duties. Other substantial statistics noted include: more nurses in California reported having had common meetings for end-of-life decision-making than those in the other three regions surveyed, being as it has a much older population. Genetic testing and counselling are also reported as normal experiences in California while lower in other areas. Conversely, all four regions …show more content…
Registered Nurses in each of the regions mentioned recurrent issues with staffing and the subsequent stress. from said staffing complications. “In fact, more than twice as many nurses reported high or very high stress associated with staffing difficulties than with any other item.” (Ulrich, 2010, p. 7). Isn’t it ironic that both the national and the international nursing codes of ethical conduct emphasize serving patients’ best interests and protecting patient’ rights, but actual evidence shows otherwise? Circumstantial evidence implies that when nurses advocate for patients they are dejected and dissuaded to a point of feeling that it is not worth trying anymore. More research is needed in this area to better assist. Respondents also exhibit concerns regarding informed consent, advance care planning, surrogate decision making and end-of-life care (Ulrich, 2010, p. 7). It is advised that nurses engage in these difficult ethical discussions. Although those less experienced claimed having greater stress and having been more uncomfortable, even those who had ethics education reported elevated levels of stress when attempting to allocate