Ethics is the basis on which societies and cultures are founded. Ethics is associated with political, social, and economic decision making. The problem arising is ethical dilemmas that always lead to controversial decisions and animated debates over the years. In the public health sector, disasters have been defined as destructive occurrences which result in the need for a variety of emergency resources to help and ensure the victims of a catastrophe survive. During such times there is probably a lack of medical, and it is accompanied by a large number of casualties which results in ethical challenges (Saban, 2016). Most nurses are faced with these dilemmas and they are supposed to make quick decisions that will save lives and handle the situation. The most appropriate ethical approach should be used during such occurrences of adverse events. The purpose of this paper is to explore the best method of ethics that nurses can put into practice during disasters.
From ancient times, the healthcare workers have always been faced with disasters such as the spread of infectious diseases which pose as a threat to their lives also. They put their lives in danger in the effort of saving other people's lives an example being a medic amid war and another nurse on duty at a hospital waiting for casualties in the emergency section not knowing the safety of her family back at home or her safety if the area is not evacuated. As much as they put their lives in the front over the past years, they have always been under ethical dilemma. These dilemmas result from the rise of threats from biological weapons, for example, Ebola and Anthrax. Other disasters include hurricanes, earthquakes, terrorist attacks, and other environmental related disasters. In such circumstances, the nurses should serve the people during such moments, and they have to follow the best ethical approach before making the right decision.
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Ethical approaches that can be used include; the Virtue Ethics Approach, whereby the nurse seeks to be a person of integrity in making considerations to solve a good case or situation. Under this ethic, the virtue of the nurse is always connected to his or her character. Another approach is the Right-Based Approach which is also known as the Golden Rule where what you do to other people is what you expect them to do for you. Lastly, there is the Utilitarian Approach, and for this case, you must make a consideration and predictions on the best actions that are supposed to be taken to make provisions for the best for the highest number. For the nurses, the best approach that can be put into place is the use of Utilitarianism whereby sacrifice has to be made to ensure that service delivered is for the best of the majority of the victims.
I prefer this utilitarian approach because it assesses actions concerning the consequences and outcomes to expect. The aim is to strive to achieve the ultimate result for the highest number and in the process preventing a significant amount of suffering. The decisions made in these cases consider equal terms for both entities’ interests because all parties involved can be subjected to pain. The Utilitarian approach can be used as the best option because it gives the best balance of benefits in the interests of both parties especially in terms of harm to them. The outcome under scrutiny in such cases is quantified in terms of contentment and suffering in either a short period or over the long-run. The rights and privileges of all the parties involved are put into consideration during the event of a disaster. With the Utilitarian approach, the nurse will get the chance to make sober-minded decisions to save as many lives as possible and at the same time protect themselves from any other impending dangers.
Nurses are faced with moral distress when making personal decisions in times of disasters, and the occurrence of such can be avoided. The following are some of the ways to prevent moral pain in times of conflict in decision-making; offering ongoing education, whereby orientations and basic education programs are given to the nurses with specific examples on the application of theoretical codes to particular issues. These programs are all aimed to equip the nurses with ethical codes to apply in cases of moral dilemmas. Prevention can also be done through the provision of on-site professionals who the nurses can confide in when they are faced with such dilemmas. The role of ethicists is to help the nurses to refocus and reflect when situations get harder. The safety of reaching out to an expert and making consultations helps the nurses in making moral decisions in times of dilemmas especially in disasters. Nurses can also be given counseling services because from incidents of disasters they can have troubled moments or rekindling of past events in their personal lives.
The ANA refers to the American Nurses Association, and this is the body that sets the guidelines on code of ethics to the nurses in the United States of America. Its involvement is on establishing the codes of Ethics that have to be applied by nurses in their areas of the discipline. Some of the guidelines given to the nurses in times of moral dilemmas include Rationing, where in cases of emergencies rationing has to be done especially in terms of allocation of resources. Nurses are advised to prioritize medical treatment based on the diagnosis and prognosis of each patient concerning allocated resources. Another guideline is on responsibility whereby the nurses are supposed to carry out their obligations to the patients, and in such scenarios, they have to offer their best to save the lives of the victims of their disaster.
In conclusion, nurses in cases of disasters they are faced with moral dilemmas and they have to use the best ethical approach to come up with a proper decision. The best ethical approach for a nurse to use is the Utilitarian Approach because it serves both interests. Nurses are supposed to follow the ANA guidelines in times of disasters to help them in making decisions.
References
Casey, Donna, (2017). Ethical Considerations during Disaster
