Date of Graduation
Spring 5-17-2018
Document Type
Project
Degree Name
Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP)
College/School
School of Nursing and Health Professions
Department/Program
Nursing
Program
Executive Leader DNP
First Advisor
Dr Brian Budds
Second Advisor
Dr Timothy Godfrey
Abstract
Nurses interacting with patients and family members need support when the course of the patient’s care becomes uncertain or conflicted leading to ethical concerns. Educating nurses about the purpose of the Hospital Ethics Committees (HEC) may support nurses with ethical concerns, alleviate moral distress and improve job satisfaction. Utilizing the HEC for ethically challenging care situations enhances the professional practice and supports the code of ethics for nurses. HECs which are often underutilized can provide valuable resources for nurses. This DNP project sought to increase the number of nurses’ ethics consultations to the HEC after providing ethics education using a humanistic teaching framework. Education focused on nurses’ experiences with ethical concerns and availability of the HEC. Findings revealed an increase in nurse requested consultations to the HEC. Nurse engagement with the HEC could be enhanced with increased nurse membership on HECs, opportunities for debriefings after ethically challenging cases and increased interactions with bioethicists.
Recommended Citation
Ware, Elaine L., "Ethics Education to Empower Nurses to Effectively Consult the Hospital Ethics Committee" (2018). Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) Projects. 135.
https://repository.usfca.edu/dnp/135
