Nursing ethics
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Multicenter Study
Professional quality of life of Japanese nurses/midwives providing abortion/childbirth care.
This study explored the relationship between professional quality of life and emotion work and the major stress factors related to abortion care in Japanese obstetric and gynecological nurses and midwives. Between October 2011 and January 2012, questionnaires that included questions concerning eight stress factors, the Professional Quality of Life Scale, and the Japanese version of the Frankfurt Emotional Work Scale, were answered by 255 nurses and midwives working in abortion and childbirth services. ⋯ The stress factors "thinking that the aborted fetus deserved to live" and "difficulty in controlling emotions during abortion care" were associated with compassion fatigue. These findings indicate that providing abortion services is a highly distressing experience for nurses and midwives.
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Observational Study
Caring for children in pediatric intensive care units: an observation study focusing on nurses' concerns.
Children in the pediatric intensive care unit are indisputably in a vulnerable position, dependent on nurses to acknowledge their needs. It is assumed that children should be approached from a holistic perspective in the caring situation to meet their caring needs. The aim of the study was to unfold the meaning of nursing care through nurses' concerns when caring for children in the pediatric intensive care unit. ⋯ The findings revealed three patterns: medically oriented nursing--here, the nurses attend to just the medical needs, and nursing care is at its minimum, leaving the children's needs unmet; parent-oriented nursing care--here, the nursing care emphasizes the parents' needs in the situation, and the children are viewed as a part of the parent and not as an individual child with specific caring needs; and smooth operating nursing care orientation--here, the nursing care is focused on the child as a whole human being, adding value to the nursing care. The conclusion drawn suggests that nursing care does not always respond to the needs of the child, jeopardizing the well-being of the child and leaving them at risk for experiencing pain and suffering. The concerns present in nursing care has been shown to be the divider of the meaning of nursing care and need to become elucidated in order to improve the cultural influence of what can be seen as good nursing care within the pediatric intensive care unit.
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Significant minority populations confer richness and diversity to British society. Responsive end-of-life care is a universal need that has ascended the public agenda following myriad reports of inadequate provision. ⋯ Recent implementation of the Equality Act 2010, together with the government and professional initiatives, promises to positively impact upon this area of contemporary relevance and concern, although the extent to which facilitative policies can truly enhance patient care will depend upon how these are translated into care at the bedside. The contributions of health professionals will be central in meeting the challenges and seizing the opportunities for meeting the religion and faith interests of patients of South Asian descent.
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The main question examined is: How do nurses and other healthcare professionals ensure ethical interprofessional collaboration-in-practice as an everyday practice actuality? Ethical interprofessional collaboration becomes especially relevant and necessary when interprofessional practice decisions are contested. To illustrate, two healthcare scenarios are analyzed through three ethics lenses. ⋯ Analysis suggests that interprofessional collaboration-in-practice may be more rhetoric than actuality. Key challenges of interprofessional collaboration-in-practice and specific conditions perpetuating dissension and conflict are outlined with specific education and policy recommendations included.
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Inadequate pain control, especially in older adults, remains a significant issue when caring for this population. Older adults, many of whom experience multiple acute and chronic conditions, are especially vulnerable to having their pain seriously underassessed and inadequately treated. ⋯ To fulfill their ethical obligation to relieve pain in older patients, nurses often need to advocate on their behalf. This article provides an overview of the persistent problem of undertreated pain in older adults and explores how nurses can meet this ethical duty through the application of Beauchamp and Childress' three principles of beneficence.