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Nursing Management and Professional Concepts 2e: 6.5 Ethics and the Nursing Student

Nursing Management and Professional Concepts 2e
6.5 Ethics and the Nursing Student
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table of contents
  1. Cover
  2. Title Page
  3. Copyright
  4. Table Of Contents
  5. Introduction
  6. Preface
  7. Standards and Conceptual Approach
  8. Chapter 1 - Overview of Management and Professional Issues
    1. 1.1 Overview
  9. Chapter 2 - Prioritization
    1. 2.1 Prioritization Introduction
    2. 2.2 Tenets of Prioritization
    3. 2.3 Tools for Prioritizing
    4. 2.4 Critical Thinking and Clinical Reasoning
    5. 2.5 Time Management
    6. 2.6 Spotlight Application
    7. 2.7 Learning Activities
    8. II Glossary
  10. Chapter 3 - Delegation and Supervision
    1. 3.1 Delegation & Supervision Introduction
    2. 3.2 Communication
    3. 3.3 Assignment
    4. 3.4 Delegation
    5. 3.5 Supervision
    6. 3.6 Spotlight Application
    7. 3.7 Learning Activities
    8. III Glossary
  11. Chapter 4 - Leadership and Management
    1. 4.1 Leadership & Management Introduction
    2. 4.2 Basic Concepts
    3. 4.3 Implementing Change
    4. 4.4 Spotlight Application
    5. 4.5 Learning Activities
    6. IV Glossary
  12. Chapter 5 - Legal Implications
    1. 5.1 Legal Implications Introduction
    2. 5.2 Understanding the Legal System
    3. 5.3 Professional Liability and Your Nursing License
    4. 5.4 Frequent Allegations and SBON Investigations
    5. 5.5 Protecting Your Nursing License
    6. 5.6 Other Legal Issues
    7. 5.7 Spotlight Application
    8. 5.8 Learning Activities
    9. V Glossary
  13. Chapter 6 - Ethical Practice
    1. 6.1 Ethical Practice Introduction
    2. 6.2 Basic Ethical Concepts
    3. 6.3 Ethical Dilemmas
    4. 6.4 Ethics Committees
    5. 6.5 Ethics and the Nursing Student
    6. 6.6 Spotlight Application
    7. 6.7 Learning Activities
    8. VI Glossary
  14. Chapter 7 - Collaboration Within the Interprofessional Team
    1. 7.1 Collaboration Within the Interprofessional Team Introduction
    2. 7.2 IPEC Core Competencies
    3. 7.3 Values and Ethics for Interprofessional Practice
    4. 7.4 Roles and Responsibililites of Health Care Professionals
    5. 7.5 Interprofessional Communication
    6. 7.6 Teams and Teamwork
    7. 7.7 Conflict Resolution
    8. 7.8 Nursing Responsibilities in Interprofessional Collaborative Practice
    9. 7.9 Spotlight Application
    10. 7.10 Learning Activities
    11. VII Glossary
  15. Chapter 8 - Health Care Economics
    1. 8.1 Health Care Economics Introduction
    2. 8.2 Trends Related to Increased Health Care Costs
    3. 8.3 Health Care Funding
    4. 8.4 Health Care Reimbursement Models
    5. 8.5 Budgets and Staffing
    6. 8.6 Resource Stewardship and Case Management
    7. 8.7 Spotlight Application
    8. 8.8 Learning Activities
    9. VIII Glossary
  16. Chapter 9 - Quality and Evidence-Based Practice
    1. 9.1 Quality and Evidence-Based Practice Introduction
    2. 9.2 Quality Care
    3. 9.3 Measuring and Improving Quality
    4. 9.4 Evidence-Based Practice and Research
    5. 9.5 Spotlight Application
    6. 9.6 Learning Activities
    7. IX Glossary
  17. Chapter 10 - Advocacy
    1. 10.1 Advocacy Introduction
    2. 10.2 Basic Advocacy Concepts
    3. 10.3 Individual and Interpersonal Advocacy
    4. 10.4 Community and Organization Advocacy
    5. 10.5 Policy Advocacy
    6. 10.6 Steps to Becoming an Advocate
    7. 10.7 QSEN: Advocating for Patient Safety and Quality Care in Nursing Education
    8. 10.8 Spotlight Application
    9. 10.9 Learning Activities
    10. X Glossary
  18. Chapter 11 - Preparation for the RN Role
    1. 11.1 Preparation for the RN Role Introduction
    2. 11.2 Preparing for the NCLEX
    3. 11.3 Obtaining Your Nursing License
    4. 11.4 Applying for a Nursing Position
    5. 11.5 Transitioning to the RN Role
    6. 11.6 Lifelong Learner
    7. 11.7 Spotlight Application
    8. 11.8 Learning Activities
    9. XI Glossary
  19. Chapter 12 - Burnout and Self-Care
    1. 12.1 Burnout & Self-Care Introduction
    2. 12.2 Stress in the Health Care System
    3. 12.3 Identifying Stress in Self
    4. 12.4 Acknowledging Stress in Others
    5. 12.5 Organizational Stress & Retention Cycle
    6. 12.6 Mitigating Stress With Self-Care
    7. 12.7 Emerging Models
    8. 12.8 Spotlight Application
    9. 12.9 Learning Activities
    10. XII Glossary
  20. Answer Keys
    1. Chapter 1
    2. Chapter 2
    3. Chapter 3
    4. Chapter 4
    5. Chapter 5
    6. Chapter 6
    7. Chapter 7
    8. Chapter 8
    9. Chapter 9
    10. Chapter 10
    11. Chapter 11
    12. Chapter 12
  21. Appendix: Classroom Activities
  22. Master Glossary

6.5 Ethics and the Nursing Student

Nursing students may encounter ethical dilemmas when in clinical practice settings. Read more about research regarding ethical dilemmas experienced by students as described in the box.

Nursing Students and Ethical Dilemmas[1]

An integrative literature review performed by Albert, Younas, and Sana in 2020 identified ethical dilemmas encountered by nursing students in clinical practice settings. Three themes were identified:

1. Applying learned ethical values vs. accepting unethical practice

Students observed unethical practices of nurses and physicians, such as breach of client privacy, confidentiality, respect, rights, duty to provide information, and physical and psychological mistreatment, that opposed the ethical values learned in nursing school. Students experienced ethical conflict due to their sense of powerlessness, low status as students, dependence on staff nurses for learning experiences, and fear of offending health care providers.

2. Desiring to provide ethical care but lacking autonomous decision-making

Students reported a lack of moral courage in questioning unethical practices. The hierarchy of health care environments left students feeling disregarded, humiliated, and intimidated by professional nurses and managers. Students also reported a sense of loss of identity in feeling forced to conform their personal identity to that of the clinical environment.

3. Whistleblowing vs. silence regarding client care and neglect

Students observed nurses performing unethical nursing practices, such as ignoring client needs, disregarding pain, being verbally abusive, talking inappropriately about clients, and not providing a safe or competent level of care. Most students reported remaining silent regarding these observations due to a lack of confidence, feeling it was not their place to report, or the fear of negative consequences. Organizational power dynamics influenced student confidence in reporting unethical practices to faculty or nurse managers.

The researchers concluded that nursing students feel moral distress when experiencing these kinds of conflicts:

  • Providing ethical care as learned in their program of study or accepting unethical practices
  • Staying silent about client care neglect or confronting it and reporting it
  • Providing quality, ethical care or adapting to organizational culture due to lack of autonomous decision-making

These ethical conflicts can be detrimental to students’ professional learning and mental health. Researchers recommended that nurse educators should develop educational programs to support students as they develop ethical competence and moral courage to confront ethical dilemmas.[2]

Read more about ethics education in nursing in the ANA’s Online Journal of Issues in Nursing article.

COVID-19 and the Nursing Profession

The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the importance of nurses’ foundational knowledge of ethical principles and the Nursing Code of Ethics. Scarce resources in an overwhelmed health care system resulted in ethical dilemmas and moral injury for nurses involved in balancing conflicting values, rights, and ethical principles. Many nurses were forced to weigh their duty to clients and society against their duty to themselves and their families. Challenging ethical issues occurred related to the ethical principle of justice, such as fair distribution of limited ICU beds and ventilators, and ethical dilemmas related to end-of-life issues such as withdrawing or withholding life-prolonging treatment became common.[3]

Regardless of their practice setting or personal contact with clients affected by COVID-19, nurses have been forced to reflect on the essence of ethical professional nursing practice through the lens of personal values and morals. Nursing students must be knowledgeable about ethical theories, ethical principles, and strategies for resolving ethical dilemmas as they enter the nursing profession that will continue to experience long-term consequences as a result of COVID-19.[4]

  1. Albert, J. S., Younas, A., & Sana, S. (2020). Nursing students' ethical dilemmas regarding patient care: An integrative review. Nurse Education Today, 88, 104389. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nedt.2020.104389 ↵
  2. Albert, J. S., Younas, A., & Sana, S. (2020). Nursing students' ethical dilemmas regarding patient care: An integrative review. Nurse Education Today, 88, 104389. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nedt.2020.104389 ↵
  3. McKenna, H. (2020). Covid-19: Ethical issues for nurses. International Journal of Nursing Studies, 110, 103673. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijnurstu.2020.103673 ↵
  4. McKenna, H. (2020). Covid-19: Ethical issues for nurses. International Journal of Nursing Studies, 110, 103673. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijnurstu.2020.103673 ↵

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            Nursing Management and Professional Concepts 2e Copyright © by Chippewa Valley Technical College is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, except where otherwise noted.
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