Ethical Responsibilities Essay

Total Length: 645 words ( 2 double-spaced pages)

Total Sources: 1+

Page 1 of 2

Ethics in Practicing Nursing

Nursing ethics is an important part of treating patients. It is important for nurses to understand and abide by the nursing ethical code of conduct. The Health Information Privacy Act (HIPAA) protects the patients' rights, and it protects their privacy. Health care professionals must adhere to the rules of HIPAA to ensure the rights of patients are not violated and their privacy is protected. In this paper I will discuss some strategies that can be employed to help nurses stay current in their practices. I will also discuss ethical practices in nursing, including confidentiality and privacy.

According to Silva & Ludwick (2006) ethics is one of the most important issues in nursing. Nurses should consider their ethical responsibilities when working with each patient in every aspect of practice. The fundamentals for practicing nursing are their social responsibility, their respect for the person, their commitment to do no harm and their honor to justice and fairness (Silva & Ludwick, 2006).
Nurses should share best practices, discuss ways to help increase higher ethical standards. Nurses, head nurses and others in charge should reward those with high ethical standards.

Patient's confidentiality and privacy is extremely important. With the help of HIPAA regulations, this is an important issue in the health care field. Maintaining patient on computers and transmitting them electronically will help to maintain privacy and confidentiality. Requiring passwords and ensuring computers are locked is important. Ensuring that patient records are not left any place where they can be seen by others or stolen. Ensuring that records are only released to authorized parties. The Nightingale Pledge, the code for nurses stated by the American Nurses Association (ANA) Ethics Committee, and the American Medical Association (AMA) all require nurses to keep the patients information and care confidential and private (Erickson & Millar, 2005).

Nurses should maintain their knowledge and stay current with any new information pertaining to nursing and ethics. Hospitals have….....

Show More ⇣


     Open the full completed essay and source list


OR

     Order a one-of-a-kind custom essay on this topic


Related Essays

HIPAA Ethics

Ethical Responsibilities: Avoid Putting Organization at Risk The 1996 HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act) helps millions of U.S. employees and family members transfer and carry on with the same healthcare insurance coverage even if they jump jobs or get fired; decreases abuse and fraud in the health sector; mandates confidential use and protection of sensitive patient health details; and mandates sector-wide healthcare data standards when it comes to processes like electronic billing (California Department of Health Care Services, 2015). HIPAA's enactment made healthcare practitioners who can view and… Continue Reading...

Nursing Metaparadigm

demonstrates that she regards the patient as central in the ethical responsibilities of the nurse (Nikfarid, et al., 2018). Other characters, particularly the physicians and researchers handling Vivian’s case, place their own research needs above the needs of the patient. Vivian, although highly educated, admits she knows little of cancer research and does not fully understand she is being used as a test subject for research from which she is unlikely to benefit. For Susie, the patient is always first and foremost the focus of nursing care. Because Vivian is critically ill and has no family members to act as… Continue Reading...

Reducing Patient Falls

preventing strategies in place, risk malpractice suits and fail to fulfill their ethical responsibilities to patients. Therefore, the organizational problem is related to insufficient—even nonexistent--fall prevention strategies. Description of Problem Falls occur at a rate of three to five per every 1000 bed stays, and are more prevalent in long-term care facilities (Patient Safety Network, 2018). The most significant consequences of falls include head trauma, bone fractures, and even death (Patient Safety Network, 2018). Even when a fall does not result directly in injury, it can seriously undermine patient trust in the healthcare team and perceptions of institutional quality of care (Patient… Continue Reading...

sample essay writing service

Cite This Resource:

Latest APA Format (6th edition)

Copy Reference
"Ethical Responsibilities" (2011, January 26) Retrieved June 4, 2026, from
https://www.aceyourpaper.com/essays/ethical-responsibilities-121668

Latest MLA Format (8th edition)

Copy Reference
"Ethical Responsibilities" 26 January 2011. Web.4 June. 2026. <
https://www.aceyourpaper.com/essays/ethical-responsibilities-121668>

Latest Chicago Format (16th edition)

Copy Reference
"Ethical Responsibilities", 26 January 2011, Accessed.4 June. 2026,
https://www.aceyourpaper.com/essays/ethical-responsibilities-121668