Deck 21: Ethics and the Profession of Nursing

Question 1

What influences encouraged the emergence of nursing ethics?

A) the need to see nursing as a "moral practice"
B) the need for a contextual approach to nursing ethics
C) the need to respond to societal ethical issues
D) the need to examine the ethical norms, unique relationships, and sphere of nursing practice

Answer 1

the need to examine the ethical norms, unique relationships, and sphere of nursing practice

Question 2

What is the name of a document that contains the wishes of the client to be carried out when they are no longer competent?

A) power of attorney
B) an advance directive
C) a will
D) a DNR order

Answer 2

an advance directive

Question 3

What are the ethical theories that consider the most important moral obligation to be maximization of positive outcomes and minimization of negative outcomes?

A) deontological theories
B) consequentialist theories
C) utilitarian theories
D) classical theories

Answer 3

consequentialist theories

Question 4

Which of the following statements best describes moral issues?

A) They are a minor concern for health care providers.
B) They help us identify good and bad behaviour.
C) They are easily resolved by following certain general rules.
D) They are complex, dynamic, contextual, and difficult to resolve.

Question 5

New technologies, choices, and concerns about intervening in the lives of others have led to a subspecialty within the field of ethical inquiry. What is this subspecialty now called?

A) professional ethics
B) bioethics
C) social values
D) ethics algorithms

Question 6

Which of the following terms refers to our beliefs and traditions about right and wrong behaviour?

A) morality
B) ethics
C) professional behaviour
D) norms
Indicate one or more answer choices that best complete the statement or answer the question.

Question 7

Which principle is being reflected when a nurse is committed to promoting the welfare of the client?

A) practical wisdom
B) reflective intelligence
C) beneficence
D) humility

Question 8

What is the term for the field of inquiry into the norms and values of the nursing profession?

A) client care ethics
B) health care ethics
C) bioethics in nursing
D) nursing ethics

Question 9

Which of the following may result from a client's end-of-life ethical dilemma?

A) withdrawal of fluids
B) resuscitation
C) hastening of death
D) refusal of treatment

Question 10

What is the ethical theory based on the foundational belief that most relationships involve power imbalances?

A) principlism
B) deontological theory
C) teleological theory
D) feminist ethics

Question 11

Which principle is being reflected when an individual utilizes self-governance and control over decision making concerning oneself?

A) respect for human dignity
B) beneficence
C) paternalism
D) autonomy

Question 12

What kind of situation is said to arise when there is no clear answer to the question, "What should we do?"

A) a moral conflict
B) a value debate
C) an ethical dilemma
D) a moral challenge

Question 13

Which state is a nurse said to be in when she is experiencing an emotional response caused by not being able to do what she believes to be the "right" thing?

A) moral distress
B) value conflict
C) ethical dilemma
D) moral confrontation

Question 14

Which of the following statements best defines ethics?

A) Ethics is a response to a situation or similar situations.
B) Ethics is a way of understanding moral issues, norms, and practices.
C) Ethics is the study of right and wrong behaviour.
D) Ethics is the study of problems associated with the practice of nursing.

Question 15

To which of the following does the term "principlism" refer?

A) a set of basic ethical principles
B) examples of principal ethical dilemmas
C) deontological theory
D) a code of ethics and principles of practice

Question 16

Which of the following is required for client consent to be considered valid?

A) Consent must be in writing.
B) Consent is informed and voluntary.
C) Consent is agreed to by the next of kin.
D) Consent has been explained to the client by a doctor.

Question 17

What is the function of a professional code of ethics?

A) to outline clients' rights
B) to provide a set of professional practice rules
C) to meet legal requirements
D) to define the ethical expectations of a profession

Question 18

Which principle is the basis of the duty to do no harm to clients?

A) pragmatism
B) non-maleficence
C) justice
D) respect for clients

Question 19

Which of the following is an important fiduciary duty for nurses?

A) respecting the client's wishes
B) ensuring consent
C) being truthful
D) providing explanations to the family

Question 20

In Canada, what is the broad legal document in which ethical approaches to health care are embedded?

A) Constitution Act
B) British North America Act
C) Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms
D) Patient's Bill of Rights

Question 21

There are many known ethical theories that assist us in sorting through ethical challenges. Which of the following are the names of these theories? (Select all that apply.)

A) principlism theories
B) consequentialist theories
C) utilitarian theories
D) deontological theories

Question 22

A nurse is attempting to assist her client to ambulate to the dining room. The care plan states that the client should use a cane. The client tells the nurse that she does not want to use the cane and that she can manage without one. The client is capable of making her own decisions. The nurse knows that this is an ethical dilemma. What is the ethical dilemma the nurse faces?

A) client autonomy versus beneficence and non-maleficence
B) client autonomy versus justice and non-maleficence
C) client autonomy versus justice, beneficence, and non-maleficence
D) client autonomy versus beneficence and justice

Question 23

On the day shift, a nurse is trying to complete her three morning wound dressings. The nurse has contracted with Client A to do this procedure and received a verbal consent that she could do it. Half way through the dressing change, however, the client rather abruptly tells the nurse that she wants the nurse to stop. What should the nurse do in this situation?

A) The nurse should tell the client it is too bad, but she now has to finish the dressing change.
B) The nurse should tell the client that the doctor has ordered the dressing change, and therefore, it has to be done.
C) The nurse should gently ask the client why she wants to stop the procedure.
D) The nurse should stop the procedure, tidy up, and report the occurrence to her supervisor.

Question 24

On night shift, a nurse has been asked to get a consent signed by a client for a surgical procedure that will occur the following morning. The doctor had been in earlier to talk to the client about the procedure and the relevant information pertaining to it. However, the doctor was too busy and asked the nurse to get the consent signed. The nurse obtains the client's signature and places the consent in the chart. In the morning, right before it is time for the nurse to go home, the client calls her into the room and states, "I don't want to have that surgery done today. I have changed my mind." What should the nurse do in this situation?

A) The nurse should tell the client that it is too bad, but she has signed the form so the surgery will occur anyway.
B) The nurse should notify the supervisor and the physician immediately.
C) The nurse should sit down with the client and ask her why she has changed her mind.
D) The nurse should try to talk the client into changing her mind about refusing surgery.