The emergency room nurse is often faced with the responsibility of providing care for people who were responsible for motor vehicle accidents. In some cases, the nurse is caring for that person along with victims of the accident
This situation causes the nurse moral distress. How could the nurse best help to alleviate this distress? 1. Refuse to care for these patients in the future
2. Ask a co-worker to care for the patients
3. Remember to respect the person, not the actions of the person
4. Be frank with the patients about how uncomfortable the nurse is
3
Rationale: Many nurses find themselves in similar, if not identical, situations during their career. Refusing to care for the patients or diverting the stress onto a co-worker is not handling the situation, only shifting it to someone else. While honesty is a good policy, the nurse should not impose his or her discomfort onto the patient. The best option is to remember that all people deserve respect as human beings, even if their actions cannot be respected.
You might also like to view...
A male patient who had a segmental left lung resection for treatment of a lung carcinoma returns from surgery with a left posterior-lateral chest tube attached to a disposable water-seal chest drainage system
Which of the following signs would indicate that the drainage system is working properly? A) Air is bubbling in the water-seal chamber. B) The fluid level in the drainage chamber remains constant. C) The fluid level in the water-seal chamber fluctuates. D) A pneumothorax is present.
Information essential for the nurse to gather when interviewing a young woman who is taking the drug Accutane (isotretinoin) for acne is which of the following?
1. Usual weight 2. Family history of breast cancer 3. Current method of birth control 4. Drugs previously used
While working in a public health clinic, the nurse assesses a child who is 3 years old. The nurse finds an open and wide anterior fontanel. The nurse is aware that an open anterior fontanel at this age most likely is:
a. normal c. due to disease, such as rickets b. a result of prolonged dehydration d. due to a congenital disorder
When the patient restricts use of her dominant arm because of pain and the nurse notes that the measurement of the circumference of the patient's nondominant arm is greater
than her dominant arm, the nurse determines that the lack of use has resulted in the dominant arm's A) Atrophy B) Hypertrophy C) Dystrophy D) Malrotation