Moral Dilemmas and Ethical Decisions in Practice, Coursework Example

Introduction

With each patient scenario, I recognize the importance of treating the patients as quickly and efficiently as possible. This supports my ability to be effective in treating patients across a variety of situations. This process is challenging on many levels because it may lead to numerous dilemmas when patients with similar needs but different circumstances present at the same time. In the examples provided, both patients are worthy of treatment; however, other factors play a role in the decision-making process. It is necessary to identify the issues associated with treating both patients in order to determine the necessary treatment plan.

Analysis

With these examples, the natural instinct and approach is to treat the patient with insurance first, since he is fully insured, regardless of his other circumstances. However, the other patient must also be evaluated in a timely manner because his needs must also be assessed. Nonetheless, the nurse should evaluate the patient with insurance before the other patient because his treatment will be paid at least in part by insurance. This decision must be made because of the patient’s insurance plan and therefore, he is able to obtain treatment at the hospital as necessary. Although this decision may have ethical consequences, it must be made because it demonstrates the importance of evaluating patients with insurance over all others as supported by national standards. However, those without insurance must also be treated appropriately, using the ethical standards set forth by the Affordable Care Act (Sorrell, 2013).

Making an effective decision regarding patient treatment in the emergency department is largely based upon need, but also upon the provision of insurance by the patient. However, nurses may experience challenges with making these decisions, which may become stressful and may compromise integrity (Ulrich et.al, 2010). These opportunities convey the importance of developing new strategies to address the needs of patients in an ethically appropriate manner at all times. The right to receive medical care is basic and essential, yet it is questioned in cases where nurses might believe that patients do not deserve care in advance of other patients; therefore, these circumstances convey the importance of developing frameworks to support ethical principles in nursing practice (Neiman, 2011). Furthermore, lack of insurance poses other risks for patients, particularly if they have no ability to pay and might possess other circumstances that lead to questionable ethical decisions for nurses (Parsi & Hossa, 2012).

When the decision is made regarding which patients to treat first, it is important to identify the resources that are available to ensure that both patients are stable and do not require true emergency care. However, other factors must be considered with this decision, including the ability of nurses to address health disparities in a timely manner that will support the treatment of these patients according to quality-based standards. It is important for nurses to recognize health disparities and their impact on patient care outcomes, while also considering other factors that play a role in enabling these patients to obtain treatment. At the same time, extenuating circumstances may pose a risk to patients and require further evaluation in order to make an ethically responsible decision that will have the greatest possible impact on both patients.

With these examples, it is important to identify the resources that are required to ensure that patient care outcomes are timely and appropriate. Therefore, additional methods must be considered that will have a positive impact on nursing practice and that will support the ethical nature of practice settings. It is important for nurses to be effective in making decisions regarding the treatment of their patients, but also to recognize that all patients are human beings and have the right to be treated by a healthcare professional with dignity and respect at all times. These behaviors require an effective understanding of the challenges of making ethically responsible decisions in the realm of nursing practice and how these decisions impact patients in different and lasting ways.

Maintaining ethical responsibility in nursing practice requires an effective understanding of the tools and opportunities that are available so that nurses are able to make these decisions appropriately at all times. For the patients in question, the facts of each case must be examined closely so that a proper decision might be made that will have a positive impact on the entire situation, including the needs of both patients. Therefore, nursing behaviors must be ethically appropriate and timely in an effort to produce the desired treatment outcomes for both patients in the example. The methods by which ethical decisions are made in nursing environments must be grounded in basic ethical principles in that all patients deserve to be treated for their medical needs in a timely manner at all times. At the same time, those with insurance are likely to be chosen first in non-critical situations, thereby creating an environment that requires a balance and an understanding of the challenges that nurses face in their efforts to be successful providers of care and treatment at all times.

Conclusion

Nurses possess a serious and unwavering responsibility to treat all patients in an ethically responsible manner. However, since they only have so much time and only so many resources to work with, not all patients can be seen at the exact same time. This poses a risk and a challenge to the integrity of nurses and nursing practice as a whole, particularly when they face difficult decisions regarding which patients to treat first. Therefore, additional insight must be explored regarding this matter in order to determine which patients will be treated and from which perspective in order to fulfill the needs of patients in a timely and ethically appropriate manner at all times.

References

Neiman, P. (2011). Nursing strikes: An ethical perspective on the US healthcare community. Nursing ethics, 18(4), 596-605.

Parsi, K., & Hossa, N. (2011). Complex discharges and undocumented patients: growing ethical concerns. The Journal of clinical ethics, 23(4), 299-307.

Sorrell, J. (2011). Ethics: The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act: Ethical Perspectives in 21st Century Health Care. OJIN: The Online Journal of Issues in Nursing, 18(1).

Ulrich, C. M., Taylor, C., Soeken, K., O’Donnell, P., Farrar, A., Danis, M., & Grady, C. (2010). Everyday ethics: ethical issues and stress in nursing practice. Journal of advanced nursing, 66(11), 2510-2519.