On Health Law and Ethics: (Two pages)
Ethics Case Study
An 8-month-old child arrives in the emergency department. The mother of the child reports the child has been crying constantly for the last several hours and she cannot get the child to stop crying. The triage nurse notes the child?s pulse and respirations are slightly elevated. Upon further examination, the nurse notes both of the child?s thighs are edematous and warm to touch. The nurse records this information on the patient?s record. The nurse also reports to the emergency room physician the patient?s status and expresses concern that the child may have been injured in some way. The physician examines the child and orders x-rays of the child?s legs. The x-ray results reveal bilateral femur fractures.
When the results of the x-rays are shown to the physician, he immediately goes into the room and discusses the situation with the child?s mother. The child?s mother is visibly upset and states that she had picked up the child from day care and noticed the child crying. The child was admitted to the hospital for further care with the child?s mother at her side. The emergency room physician determined that it was not child abuse and, therefore, should not be reported.
Answer the following:
? Identify the ethical issues in this case study.
? Discuss how to use the ethical principles to address the issues in this case study
? Describe any conflicts between your personal values and the ethical principles applied.
? Describe how this situation might be handled if the patient was in a different health care setting.
? Identify a professional nursing organization and describe how this organization incorporates ethical principles into their practice.
Clearly state major points and support them with specific details, examples and analysis.
