ABSTRACT
Ethics as a discipline and certainly morals as a force in decision-making is not new. However, the remarkable advances in science and technology that have occurred during the past 30 years have brought to the bedside unforeseen dilemmas, forcing health care professionals to take an ethical look at the care they deliver. Powerful diagnostic techniques, sophisticated surgical procedures, effective drugs, and worthwhile therapeutic interventions have enabled health care practitioners to eliminate many diseases and minimize disability. This progress has brought enormous human benefit. Unfortunately, coupled with these dramatic results is a reality that sometimes the quality of life produced is much less than what was desired. Our capacity to prolong life has not coincided with our ability to restore some level of health. Medical interventions have been able to maintain vital functions without always benefiting the underlying disease process. The rapidity with which technology has perpetuated ethical issues within the clinical setting has often lead to hasty and arbitrary decision-making. It is only with a thrust toward preventive ethics that decisions can be thoughtful and beneficial to patients and families. Thus, this article focuses on the implementation of policies that minimize and/or prevent ethical conflicts.
Subject(s)
Decision Making, Organizational , Ethics, Institutional , Ethics , Hospitals , Policy Making , Documentation , Ethics Committees, Clinical , Ethics, Nursing , Home Care Services , Humans , Professional Staff Committees/organization & administration , Resuscitation , Withholding TreatmentSubject(s)
Ethics, Nursing , Nursing, Supervisory/organization & administration , Organizational Culture , Decision Making, Organizational , Ethics, Institutional , Health Care Rationing , Humans , Nursing, Supervisory/methods , Nursing, Supervisory/standards , Organizational Policy , Professional Practice/standards , Truth DisclosureABSTRACT
Institutional ethics committees first gained national prominence after the 1976 Karen Ann Quinlin decision by the New Jersey Supreme Court. However, it wasn't until the Federal Government promulgated the Baby Doe regulations in 1983 that significant movement occurred toward implementing such committees. Currently, statistics show that the number of ethics committees are increasing in health care institutions across the country. However, the majority of studies have focused on adult institutions. The membership of ethics committees and the objectives under which the committees function are usually addressed by the studies. Very little attention has been given to the nursing representation on the institutional ethics committee and the unique role played by nurses in the deliberation of ethical decision-making. It is the intent of this research to shed some light on the availability and functions of ethics committees within children's hospitals. Attention has also been given to the nurses' involvement on such committees. Additionally, the study takes a separate look at nursing ethics committees, their function within an institution, and the availability of ethics education for nurses. The study offers information not previously acknowledged in past studies of ethics committees. The study also opens up to consideration the unique concerns of nurses and their roles in ethical decision-making.
