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Ethical Dilemma
Ethical Dilemma
Jordyn Elwell
August 9, 2020
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BENCHMARK- ETHICAL DILEMMA
Ethical dilemmas are very common in the nursing workforce and contribute to many
decisions that a nurse will have to make. When these dilemmas arise, it is important for nursing
staff to understand how to solve it while referring to principles, rules and standards of guidelines
(Huber, 2018). This paper will thoroughly address an ethical dilemma regarding religious beliefs
along with skills to resolve the issue, and a possible solution all while keeping the patient as safe
Ethical dilemmas that arise can involve many different situations but one that may be
commonly seen is the decision between science and spirituality. Many nurses face the ethical
dilemma of choosing to treat the patient with scientific methods that could help the patient or
following the patient’s religious beliefs which may go against the scientific method. An example
of this kind of ethical dilemma would be whether or not to give a patient a blood transfusion to
save their life although that goes against their religious beliefs. While the blood transfusion may
be lifesaving, there are patient rights and ethical standards that should be addressed before
making a decision.
In this particular situation, giving a blood transfusion would ultimately be keeping the
patient safe if it was necessary to keep them alive after losing a significant amount of blood.
While it might seem like the best way to keep the patient alive, going against the patient’s wishes
is overall neglecting to respect their rights. To keep any patient safe, it would be important to
assess their records and look for any signs that they would reject care due to religion or even
DNR. If none of that is found in the chart, it would be keeping the patient safe to do everything
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to keep them alive. However, giving a patient care that is against their plan of care is not taking
Making an ethical decision may be hard for some nurses, especially when there are
differences in opinions and beliefs. Since nurses face these dilemmas frequently, there are many
tools and principles that can be reviewed to help guide them to making the right decision. The
ANA created the Code of Ethics to give nurses a specific and reliable resource to reference when
they come across a situation that may involve making an ethical decision. An ethical principle
each person and respect their differences, which in this case is their religion and beliefs. Each
patient has the right to their own choices when it comes to their treatment and nurses need to
respect and grant them that right. Other ethical principles that can be addressed in these
dilemmas include beneficence, justice and nonmaleficence (Haddad & Geiger, 2020).
When facing an ethical dilemma, it can be very beneficial to reach out to other nurses,
especially ones who are experienced and may have dealt with issues like this before. Discussing
ideas and solutions among other nurses and nurse managers might help the nurse to understand
what the real ethical solution is while looking beyond just what they think is right and what
follows their own personal beliefs. In this situation, it would be ethical to respect the patient’s
wishes, beliefs and religion and avoid performing a blood transfusion even though it could be
lifesaving. In the Code of Ethics, it states that nurses need to respect human dignity and respect
the choices of the patients which would be a big factor in the decision for this situation
(American Nurse Association, 2020). It would be important to remember that every patient has
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the right to choose their treatment and if they decide to decline treatment due to religious beliefs,
Conclusion
It can be hard for a nurse to make an ethical decision when that decision may go against
their own beliefs or opinions, but it is important to do what is at the best interest of the patient
and follow their rights. Nurses have many resources available to them to help them make the
right decision along with professional personnel such as nurse managers. Acknowledging the
ethical dilemma while maintaining the safety of the patient, using professional skills to address
it, and using resources to come up with a solution are all important when an issue arises and
References
American Nurses Association. (2020). Ethics and human rights. Retrieved from
https://www.nursingworld.org/practice-policy/nursing-excellence/ethics/
Duquesne University. (2020, June 05). Ethical Issues in Nursing: Explanations & Solutions.
Haddad, L., & Geiger, R. (2020). Nursing Ethical Considerations. Statpearls. Retrieved from
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK526054/.
Huber, D. L. (2018). Leadership & nursing care management (6th ed.). St. Louis, MO: Elsevier.