Healthcare Ethical Dilemmas

Ethical Issues
Healthcare professionals face the challenge of resolving ethical dilemmas on a regular basis. This paper will discuss a hypothetical ethical dilemma in a healthcare setting as if it were the author’s. Competing loyalties between the organization and patient will be indentified and an ethical response will be provided along with contrasting ethical responses. Implications to risk management will be considered and an ethical decision making model will be identified to guide future actions.
The Situation
Clumsy Walker is an 82 year old female that has been hospitalized due to pneumonia. She has mild dementia and is a high fall risk. She has a history of broken hips and has a tendency to wonder and has been found wondering the
Walker’s case, the most ethical response was determined to be the use a modified bed with extra high rails. This essentially placed her in a protective environment that made it virtually impossible for Mrs. Walker to get out of bed without assistance. Additionally the nurse call button was repositioned so that Mrs. Walker could have easier access to it. Staff was scheduled to check in on her every half hour. A sign was also placed on the wall in a conspicuous location that stated, ‘For assistance in getting out of bed, please ring the nurse call button’. In other words, Mrs. Walker was constrained without being restrained. Consequently, the interests of the hospital were protected and the requests of the patient were
In our hypothetical scenario, the proposal to restrain Mrs. Walker had been made in order to protect her from harm and to protect the hospital from liability. However, had they restrained Mrs. Walker against her will and her daughter’s wishes, it could have also opened the door for a lawsuit. The ethical response described in this paper provided an alternative that respected all parties’ interests and minimized risk exposure for the healthcare organization.
Possible Ethical Decision Making Model
There are several different ethical decision making models in use today. The following five-step ethical decision-making process is outlined by Aiken as a tool for resolving ethical dilemmas.
Step 1: Collect, Analyze, and Interpret the Data
Obtain as much information as possible about the particular ethical dilemma to be decided. After collecting information, bring the pieces of information together in a manner that gives the clearest and sharpest focus to the dilemma.
Step 2: State the