Definitive and comprehensive guidance for members of healthcare ethics committees confronted with ethically challenging situations.

This handbook provides tools for nurse educators, ethics educators, practicing nurses and allied health professionals for developing confidence and skill in ethical decision making in interdisciplinary settings such as acute and chronic care hospitals and clinics. It is useful for all healthcare personnel who face ethical issues in the course of their work and who work with nurses to resolve these issues. While the content is based on a US context, the concerns of nurses internationally are discussed and emphasized. Nurses working in acute and chronic care settings face many obstacles to providing good care and are often the first line of defense related to patient safety and meeting the needs of patients and their families. Some of the obstacles to optimal patient care are institutional, some sociocultural, and others the result of inadequate communication. Evidence points to the idea that while nurses do have the knowledge and skills to address practice problems of various sorts, they may not be confident in their skills of ethical decision making and advocacy actions. This is a resource to develop moral agency on behalf of individuals and to address broader barriers to good care raised at the local, community, or social levels.

Educating in Ethics for the Professions: A Compendium of Research, Theory, Practice, and an Agenda for the Future offers a state-of-the-art discussion on the part of applied (“professional”) ethics educators who describe the teaching of ethics for their professions and who collectively represent a wide-ranging array of professions. The volume begins with an overview of the topics, contested ideas, and challenges confronting applied ethics educators, across the generations, providing a foundation from which the concept of ethics education as an integral formation frames each contributor’s historical overview identifying how research, theory, and practice have evolved in each profession to this day. These discussions then turn to the topics, contested ideas, and challenges emerging in contemporary discourse. Each discussion culminates with suggestions regarding what ethics educators must consider for the future. The volume closes with a synthesis of the commonalities among and differences between the discussions representing diverse professional perspectives, yet framing this history as well as identifying an agenda for teaching applied ethics in the future.

This is a unique, innovative professional nursing ethics textbook designed specifically for all practicing nurses and to meet the educational needs of all nursing students, including RN to BSN and RN to MSN students. Written by experts in the field, it discusses ethical concepts relevant to the registered nurse who has practiced for several years but is learning higher level concepts and applications. This text addresses different areas of professional practice and is rich with case studies illustrating the need for ethical competence and decision making. The book fulfills the necessary criteria for the AACN Essentials for Baccalaureate Education and the QSEN and IOM competencies. It also integrates relevant provisions and statements from the revised Code for Nurses (ANA, 2015). Clear and concise, the text relates content to the nurse's current practice and introduces a framework for the development of ethical competence, from recognition of an ethical situation to implementation of a justifiable action. A decision-making model that includes elements of care and virtue ethics is also included. Essential communication and conflict skills are addressed, in addition to the role of the ethics committee and ethics consultation. The book discusses common ethical issues likely to be encountered, how to recognize and address moral distress, and ethical practice as it relates to research, quality, and safety. Case studies that incorporate evidence-informed research provide the opportunity to develop ethical skills and apply decisionmaking principles. Relevant QSEN competencies and provisions and statements from the ANA's revised Code for Nurses (2015) are featured in each chapter. Interactive exercises and questions and PowerPoints provide further opportunity for critical thinking. KEY FEATURES: Addresses the specific needs of practicing nurses and students in the RN to BSN and RN to MSN courses Fulfills AACN Essentials, IOM competencies, and QSEN KSAs Integrates relevant provisions and statements from the revised Code for Nurses (ANA, 2015) Builds upon previous practice experience Discusses ethical competence in a variety of practice environments Includes case studies to apply ethical competencies

Who should have access to assisted reproductive technologies? Which one of many seriously ill patients should be offered the next available transplant organ? When may a surrogate decision maker decide to withdraw life-prolonging measures from an unconscious patient? Questions like these feature prominently in the field of health care ethics and in the education of health care professionals. This book provides a concise introduction to the major concepts, principles and issues in health care ethics, using case studies throughout to illustrate and analyse challenging ethical issues in contemporary health care. Topics range widely, from confidentiality and truthfulness to end-of-life care and research on human subjects. Ethics and Health Care will be a vital resource for students of applied ethics, bioethics, professional ethics, health law and medical sociology, as well as students of medicine, nursing and other health care professions.