Case study 2 involves a scenario in which Licensed Practical Nurse Andrew observes Registered Nurse Brewer, noticing signs of intoxication of alcohol. While it may seem like none of his business to care about, nurses must look out for each other because the delivery of effective services takes a collective effort. Proper and professional nursing can be defined as the optimization, protection as well as promotion of abilities, health, and the prevention of illnesses and injury. Additionally, it entails the alleviation of suffering and adversity through the advocacy of care for families, populations, individuals, and communities.
According to Cressey (1998) under the general terms of service for physicians, healthcare practitioners are normally obliged to by medical ethics to offer the required treatment due to an emergency immediately no matter the place and time provided it is within their scope of practice. However, the caveats that are normally attached to this requirement is that they ought to be physically capable and available to attend to any such emergencies. The term ‘physically capable’ implies the sanity of mind and the soberness enough to guarantee proper function and sound decision making. Therefore, by virtue of ethics, Andrew ought to intervene in the case of Brewer to help him sober up for proper functioning to avoid casualties during his duty.
Delegate your assignment to our experts and they will do the rest.
The New South Wales Nurses and Midwives Association recognizes that impairment of the mind of the nurse due to alcohol intoxication poses a serious risk to the welfare, health, and safety of other nurses, and compromises their ability to perform their duties (ANMF, 2017). Additionally, it recognizes that other factors may as well affect the nurse's ability to perform to their optimum best, and this includes personal issues at home and shifts of work, which may overburden them. Extreme exhaustion of the nurses is a serious hindrance to their performance and hence the need for healthcare facilities to develop flexible schedules that allows all the nurses time to rest.
According to the National Association of Licenced Practical Nurses (NALPN), nurses are obliged to maintain the highest standards in terms of language, demeanor, dress, and personal appearance. Additionally and as part of their inherent responsibility, the code requires every nurse to accept the responsibility for safe nursing by maintaining mental and physical fitness as well as educational preparation to practice (NALPN, 2019). In view of the above sentiments, it is therefore paramount that Nurse Brewer makes an effort to remain sober during work and show up prepared to perform his functions. Legal implications inherent in the above scenario include disciplinary action against Nurse Brewer and at worse, the loss of his job.
Overall, drawing up a guideline on the use of alcohol on and off work is impossible because different individuals have different reactions towards it. Besides, there is no distinct relationship between the concentration of alcohol in the blood and the brain function of an individual. The minimum concentration of alcohol must be related to the complexity of the skills required for the job as well as the possible consequences of acting or not taking action. Although the heavy workload and the stress encountered in the nursing environment may lead some nurses to resort to drugs even in the workplace to remain sane, it is every individual's duty to remain sober and ready for work all the time they are at work.
References
ANMF. (2017). NSW Nurses and Midwives Association. Policy on Alcohol and other Drug Issues in the Work Place , pp. 1-4.
Cressey, D. (1998). Too drunk to care? BMJ, 316 (7143), 1515–1517. doi: 10.1136/bmj.316.7143.1515
NALPN. (2019). Nursing Practice Standards for the Licensed Practical/Vocational Nurse . Retrieved from NALPN: https://nalpn.org/nalpn-practice-standards/
