Ethical principles implement a foundation for nursing care. They are defined as a base for nurse’s judgment on a consideration of consequences and on worldwide moral principles when composing clinical conclusion. The purpose of this discussion is to discuss the ethical dilemma that nurse faces in the case study about Lora, a young girl who is physically abused by her father and had been sexually abused by her stepfather. According to Nathaniel and Burkhardt ethical principles include autonomy, beneficence, nonmaleficence, veracity, confidentiality, justice, and fidelity (pg. 77). In the case study: Making the Best Choice (Nathaniel and Burkhardt, 2014), I believe that all ethical principles were involved.
The most fundamental one is autonomy,
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Nurse’s options may include not to report the event, notify the supervisor, or call child care services. If the nurse chooses not to do anything and keep the matter confidential she faces the potential of being legally responsible for her action. In the case that she chooses to tell her supervisor, she may get support from him/her and realize that reporting the incident is the right thing to do. In case that her supervisor tells her not to report the case the nurse still has the legal obligation to report it. Calling the child care services without a delay may help Lora find the safest place for the time being and avoid returning home to her abusive father. If Lora was my patient I would try to gain her trust by listening, I would attempt to convince her to report the abuse, and I would try to find out what kind of relationship she has with her mother and if calling her would be a right thing to do. If all fails I would report the abuse because protecting my patient would be my priority. In conclusion, sadly child abuse is not that unusual in our society, and I believe that nurses must be educated about recognizing, documenting, and reporting a doubtful child abuse. Nurses face an ethical dilemma on a daily basis, but no matter how hard it is we always have to put our patient safety and well-being