09 Jan Ethics in a nursing program and practice. Compare and examine the consequences of unethical behavior in a master’s degree in nursing program and nursing practice by providing an example

Compare And Examine the Consequences of Unethical Behaviors in a Nursing Master's Program and in the Nursing Practice by Providing One Example for Each.

Both in the field of medical services and in the field of education, ethics are key elements. Nurses are a crucial component of the medical team since they are the ones who engage with patients for the longest periods. When they are engaging with patients, nursing employees are obligated to conduct themselves ethically. In addition, they are obliged to gradually develop their abilities if they encounter challenges and issues when treating patients (Oakes, 2023). As a result, one of the most important goals of a nursing master's degree is to provide those pursuing nursing with the necessary training and teach them about ethics in their professional practice.

In nursing, ignorance is one of the most prevalent examples of unethical conduct. The primary obligation for attending to the needs of patients lies with the nurses. According to Khodayarimotlagh et al. (2022), there is a possibility that nurses do not fulfill the appropriate standard, which leads to neglect that may cause any form of injury to the patients, whether it be physical or mental. When a healthcare professional allocated to a patient fails to keep track of the patient's progress, this might be considered an instance of carelessness on the part of the nurses. A circumstance like this might lead to the nurse failing to recognize indicators of illness in the patients, which would result in the nurse failing to seek the physician's assistance. Such an activity might jeopardize a patient's life (Khodayarimotlagh et al., 2022). If malpractice happens in the nursing field, it is of the utmost importance to determine who is accountable for it. If someone is found to be guilty of anything, they will face consequences such as losing their practice license, being subject to claims for malpractice, and being suspended. The healthcare institution may also incur charges if its nurses are careless, which may harm the patients.

The practice of academic misconduct is an example of unethical behavior that may be seen in a doctoral program in nursing. According to Taghadosi et al. (2022), academic dishonesty might include practicing cheating on placement tasks on computer tests, homework, or reports related to the subject matter. Academic dishonesty may take many forms, including the fabrication of data not being gathered following the appropriate procedures. Copying content from mobile phones, notes, or books during tests without the teacher's consent is another kind of cheating that may occur. According to Taghadosi et al. (2022), learners pursuing an advanced degree in nursing who are caught cheating may be subjected to various other disciplinary sanctions. Among these penalties is the possibility of being suspended from the master's program or expelled. If the cheating is documented on the student's academic records, the students' careers may also be negatively impacted.

References

Khodayarimotlagh, Z., Ahmadi, F., Sadooghiasl, A., & Vaismoradi, M. (2022). Professional protection as the strategy of nurse managers to deal with nursing negligence.

International Nursing Review.  https://www.researchgate.net/publication/357991350_Professional_protection_as_the_strategy_of_nurse_managers_to_deal_with_nursing_negligence

Taghadosi, M., Valiee, S., & Aghajani, M. (2021). Nursing faculty's point of view regarding noncompliance with ethics in academic environments: a qualitative study.  BMC Nursing, 20(1).  https://www.researchgate.net/publication/348359775_Nursing_faculty's_point_of_view_regarding_noncompliance_with_ethics_in_academic_environments_a_qualitative_study

Oakes, M. (2023). A Causal-Comparative Study Of Student And Faculty Perceptions Of Academic Misconduct In Advanced Practice Nursing Education.  https://digitalcommons.liberty.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=5315&context=doctoral

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In a master's program in nursing as well as in clinical practice, unethical behavior can have significant consequences for patients and the overall healthcare system. To stop them from happening and to encourage moral behavior in the nursing profession, it is critical to comprehend and investigate their repercussions. Exam cheating and assignment copying are just two examples of the unethical activity that can occur in a master’s program in nursing. Falsifying clinical hours is an example of unethical action in a master's program for nurses. A required number of clinical hours should be completed by nursing students as part of their education. Lying about the number of hours worked is an unethical practice known as "falsifying clinical hours," which can have major repercussions (Pittman & Barker, 2020). If nursing students fabricate their clinical hours, they might not have the necessary knowledge and abilities to treat patients safely and competently. Lawsuits, patient injury, and the nursing student's loss of license are all possible outcomes of this. Furthermore, misrepresenting about clinical hours damages patients' trust in healthcare practitioners and compromises the integrity of the nursing profession (Pittman & Barker, 2020).

In nursing practice, unethical behavior can also have serious consequences. One example of unethical activity in nursing practice that can have negative effects is discrimination. Giving patients unfair or biased treatment because of their color, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, or other characteristics is known as discrimination (Narayan, 2019). Discrimination violates nursing's ethical principles and may result in injury, a decline in trust, and legal repercussions for the nurse. Discrimination can take many different forms, such as refusing to collaborate with coworkers based on a patient's identity, making disparaging remarks or jokes about them, or denying patients specific treatments or procedures. Discrimination violates nurses' moral obligations to treat patients with safety and compassion and is unethical (Blanchet Garneau et al., 2018). Discrimination may result in litigation, injury to patients, and loss of nursing licensing. Discrimination can also harm the credibility of the nursing profession and produce a toxic work environment.

Unethical behavior can have serious repercussions for nursing practice and master’s programs in nursing. These effects can affect the individual as well as the healthcare industry. The foundations of morality and the consequences of unethical activity must be understood by nurses and nursing students. Nursing education and continuing professional development should include ethics training and teaching. Policies and processes to deal with unethical behavior and encourage integrity in the workplace should be in place in healthcare companies as well (Choe et al., 2020). The nursing profession may uphold its integrity and offer patients competent and safe treatment by encouraging ethical behavior.

References:

Pittman, O. A., & Barker, E. (2020). Academic dishonesty: What impact does it have and what can faculty do? Journal of the American Association of Nurse Practitioners, 32(9), 598-601. DOI: 10.1097/JXX.0000000000000477

Choe, K., Kim, S., Lee, C., & Kim, S. (2020). Effect of ethics seminar on moral sensitivity and ethical behavior of clinical nurses. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 18(1), 241

Blanchet Garneau, A., Browne, A. J., & Varcoe, C. (2018). Drawing on antiracist approaches toward a critical antidiscriminatory pedagogy for nursing. Nursing Inquiry, 25(1), e12211. 

Narayan, M. C. (2019). CE: Addressing implicit bias in nursing: A review. AJN The American Journal of Nursing, 119(7), 36-43. DOI: 10.1097/01.NAJ.0000569340.27659.5a