Student 1 Week 4 Discussion: Amanda Dubreuiel Posted
Student 1 Week 4 Discussion: Amanda Dubreuiel Posted
Week 4 Discussion
Amanda Dubreuiel posted,
In regards to Topic one; two nurses are wanting to study whether a pain assessment tool for
critical care patients is valid and reliable when applied to a group of patients who cannot
communicate verbally due to mechanical ventilation. This type of study and research
would require a full review by the IRB. The consent process is questionable. Nothing is
mentioned in the topic of how the consent was obtained. This opens doors for legal liability.
Although I feel the study would be good research and have a good outcome that
would further help patients; it still does not abide by the research process that is to be adhered by
and consent is one important step that is not to be overlooked. HIPPA is another concern here. If
consent was not given then you can run into HIPPA violations. I feel most people may not mind
being studied but some may take offense that their care was part of a research study without their
knowledge. I do not feel physical harm would not be a problem in this study due to the
participants in the study the medical treatment is no different than if the study was not being
done, however they may face embarrassment or be offended in giving out any personal
information. I feel this study would be unethical because it violates research laws.
References:
Response student 1
Hi Amanda.
In my discussion I used intubated patients in the ICU as an example to study the topic. These
patients have a tendency to accumulate secretions in both the endotracheal and oral cavity and
thus need to be suctioned to assist in the clarification of secretions to prevent aspiration and
contain the spread of microorganisms due to accumulation and bacterial development. Foe such
research to take place consent from the patient is a key factor to be considered for the patients
have the right to choose whether they want the study to be done on them or not. In the cases
where the patient is unable to make the decision the family can be asked and it also requires the
full board’s review for such research to be done(Houser, 2014).
Reference
From 1944 throughout the Cold War era and until the end of the 1980s, through the Department
of Energy, the United States government sponsored secret research focusing on the effects of
radiation on human beings. The human subjects involved in this study, over the years, were
unaware of their participation in the experiments that targeted cancer patients, military personnel,
and pregnant women. The program was conducted in different institutions across the country,
with some of the patients injected with plutonium. Pregnant women were fed mildly radioactive
iron while the mentally challenged were encouraged to consume snacks and foods laced with
radioactive calcium and iron traces. The major ethical concern was that the subjects were
unaware that they were participating in the study, which means that their right to self-
determination as required by the principle of autonomy was denied (King et al., 1999).
The study violated The Nuremberg Code of 1949, which provided clear guidelines on what is
accepted when conducting human subjects. More emphasis on this regulation was introduced.
Through the concerned institutions, the government was required to expose the results of their
study, make a public apology, and compensate the affected individuals and their families.
Through this study, there was a renewed focus on bioethics research and the need to ensure that
IRB was provided with the opportunity to address ethical issues when researching on human
subjects (King et al., 1999).
Informed consent would have been needed to make the study ethical and valid. Through
informed consent, the participants would be provided with opportunities to interrogate the idea of
research and engage in measures that were directed towards the realization of positive and valid
outcomes. This is because the participants would determine the extent to which the study would
respect their privacy and ensure that limited harm was directed towards them while distributing
the benefits and cost of the study equally (Houser, 2016).
References
Houser, J. (2016). Nursing research: Reading, using and creating evidence. Jones & Bartlett
Learning.
King, N. M., Henderson, G., & Stein, J. (Eds.). (1999). Beyond regulations: Ethics in human
subject’s research. UNC Press Books.
Response student 2
Hi Yemmi.
Patient autonomy is something that is and should be held with high regards because of the utmost
importance it is to obtain patient consent before carrying out any sort or form of research study
on them. Being exposed to a radioactive material can have serious effects no only the person but
can be a generational effect as it can be passed down. The patients that are then exposed to such
material like radioactive calcium and iron traces, especially pregnant women do have a right to
give or deny consent before being exposed to such materials for research purposes as they face
the risk of passing it down to their unborn children. Ethical questions may arise on the matters
like this where research is done on actual people and thus why the need for consent failure to do
so violates a number of codes and guidelines put in place for such research. IRB is provided with
the opportunity to address ethical issues when researching on human subjects (Houser, 2016).
Reference
Houser, J. (2016). Nursing research: Reading, using and creating evidence. Jones & Bartlett
Learning.