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Ethical and Legal Responsibilities
Home care patients require constant assistance that has to be delivered professionally and in time. However, some specialists insist that such patients should recover at home and, in some cases, even without support. However, such a perception violates ethical and legal norms. The main goal of this paper is to discuss the ethical and legal responsibilities of a nurse who supports the idea that home care patients need to be cared for in a hospital, and that they should not be discharged from the service.
Nursing ethics is an important element in nursing practice. Many ethical principles are necessary in this case. The first principle is beneficence (“Short definitions,” n.d.). It is based on the idea that the nurse’s actions should be beneficial for a patient. Therefore, a nurse should focus on things that are best for a patient. In this case, a home care patient requires medical help and should not be discharged from the service. The second principle is fidelity (“Short definitions,” n.d.). Faithful devotion to duty is highly important in nursing. It includes almost all the professional responsibilities of a nurse. The next two principles are totality and integrity (“Short definitions,” n.d.). These principles emphasize that a patient should be delivered care, considering all their needs. The last principle is justice (“Short definitions,” n.d.). It implies that all patients should be treated equally and fairly. All these principles support human dignity and improve the relationships between patients and care providers. Nursing ethics emphasizes the necessity of caring rather than curing. A practicing nurse needs to separate ethical principles from other responsibilities. A moral side of nursing activities has a significant impact on the quality of health care. Therefore, competent nurses should pay particular attention to ethics.
Legal responsibilities of nurses are also very important as medical errors often have very serious consequences. Nurses should abide by the law in all of their professional activities because disobedience leads to punishment. Each state has its Nurse Practice Act that describes rules and laws which guide all practicing nurses (Edwards, 2017). Several legal responsibilities are pertinent to this case. First, nurses have to advocate for their patients under any circumstances. They have the legal responsibility to monitor patients to prevent and address occurring complications. Second, nurses should administer medication accurately and timely. If it is not done, patients are exposed to serious health risks. Disobedience to this rule might be considered malpractice (Edwards, 2017). This duty is also pertinent to this case because such patients might not be able to administer medication without assistance. Third, one of the main responsibilities of nurses is to provide care at all times. Patients might need help with different issues such as hygiene or nutrition. If nurses do not provide such assistance, it can be considered patient neglect, which is a direct violation of the law. Finally, nurses have to provide professional consultations to their patients. It is their legal responsibility to explain all possible complications of prescribed treatments. Therefore, all the above-mentioned responsibilities cannot be fulfilled if a patient is discharged from the healthcare service.
In conclusion, ethical and legal responsibilities play a crucial role in nursing. Such principles and rules should guide all nursing activities. It is especially important when it comes to advocating the patient’s interests. Therefore, all practicing nurses should pay particular attention to these aspects when fulfilling professional duties.
References
Edwards, T. (2017). Legal responsibilities of nurses. Web.
Short definitions of ethical principles and theories familiar words, what do they mean? (n.d.). Web.
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