PubMed · 9155437
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N Auner. 1997. [Ethics in nursing].. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/9155437/
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AIM OF THE PAPER: The aim of this paper is to examine the extent to which there is a requirement to obtain informed consent prior to nursing care procedures. RATIONALE: The requirement for nurses to obtain consent prior to nursing care procedures is addressed in various nursing policy documents. It is important that nurses understand the legal and ethical rationale behind the principles of informed consent so that the principles are applied appropriately to the particular context of nursing care. ARGUMENT: The ethical and legal rationale behind the concept of informed consent and its relevance to nursing practice are examined. In this paper, it is argued that the function of informed consent is to protect patient autonomy and to promote meaningful decision-making. Given the potential for nursing care procedures to infringe patient autonomy, consent is clearly a relevant concept in nursing. Furthermore, in law, any touching without consent is a potential battery. Informed consent is often associated as a rigid procedure, only relevant to surgical or research procedures. Consent should be obtained prior to nursing care procedures whenever patient autonomy is at stake. However, information-giving should be determined by the needs of the patient and approached in such a way as to facilitate meaningful decision-making. Given the individual nature of infringements to patient autonomy, it is difficult to predetermine all those care procedures that require consent; any list of procedures would fail to be comprehensive. CONCLUSIONS: The principles of informed consent should underpin our approach to nursing care procedures, which should not be mechanistic but determined by the needs of individual patients.
Bearing witness-not bearing witness has been posited as a fundamental rhythm of coexistence. In biomedical ethical writings, the concept of fidelity, or faithfulness, has been used to describe an obligation to act in good faith with such actions as keeping promises or vows, fulfilling agreements, maintaining relationships, and individuals' fulfilling fiduciary responsibilities. In this column, the nursing phenomenon of acting faithfully in the nurse-person relationship shall be defined and explored with practice implications through reflections as viewed from the lens of the nursing theoretical framework of the human becoming school of thought.
This article details a study that was undertaken in order to give voice and thereby increase understanding of the less articulated knowledge used in practice by palliative care nurses. An additional aim was to explore perceived influences on the development of these nurses. A hermeneutic approach was used to explore the lived experiences of seven nurses who had worked in the field for more than 2 years. The themes that emerged from analysis of the data were: knowing the bigger picture, time (movement and measure), ethical dimensions, knowing and minding yourself, the 'just' and 'simply' of practice, the embodiment of being with unseen tutors. Recommendations relating to the need for further research, practice setting and palliative education are suggested from the findings of the study.