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What moral requirements cause ethical dilemmas among nurse executives?
Author(s) -
KATSUHARA Yumiko
Publication year - 2005
Publication title -
japan journal of nursing science
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.363
H-Index - 17
eISSN - 1742-7924
pISSN - 1742-7932
DOI - 10.1111/j.1742-7924.2005.00028.x
Subject(s) - pride , duty , obedience , nursing , psychology , public relations , social psychology , political science , medicine , law
Aim: The purpose of the present study is to clarify the moral requirements that cause ethical dilemmas among nurse executives. Ethical dilemmas are defined as situations where moral requirements conflict, and neither requirement is overridden. Methods and Results: Twenty‐five nurse executives were asked to describe the situations where they had faced their most difficult ethical decisions. A total of 41 stories were told. These included disclosure of medical errors (eight cases), performance evaluations (six cases), and discomfort regarding physicians’ behaviour (five cases), as well as other situations. There were 48 ethical dilemmas in 41 cases, and each of these dilemmas represented conflicts among more than two of the 17 kinds of moral requirements. Conclusion: These moral requirements are: protection of one's own pride, doing one's civic duty to society, acceptance of gender roles, treating others in a caring and benevolent fashion, protection of patients’ rights, assurance of nursing quality, protection of nurse's pride, protection of the lives of patients, organizational profit motives, protection of workers’ rights among the staff, representation of the interests of the nursing division, smooth collaboration with physicians, execution of organisational rules, maintenance of Japanese cultural norms, observation of legal standards, respect for community needs, and obedience to political imperatives.