Ethics Focus You Are a Nurse at a Local Jail. You Work

Essay

Ethics Focus
You are a nurse at a local jail. You work dayshift, and most days, with exception of the days the doctor visits, you are the person in charge. Zack Jones is an inmate-patient in your facility. Zack has a history of seizures, and he receives medication daily for his condition. While conducting your daily rounds to administer medication to the inmates, he asks to speak with you privately about his condition. You agree to speak with him. During the conversation, he indicates that he has been feeling more and more fatigued and he thinks his medication may need to be changed. He also states that last Friday, your day off, he had a seizure that required correctional personnel to have him transported to a local hospital for treatment. You advise Zack that he must sign up for medical call to be evaluated by the medical staff. You remind him that he will be required to pay a $10 copay before the medical staff will see him. He asks you to "do him a favor" and waive the copay because he does not have the money to pay it. Although you would like to help him out, the policy does not allow the copay to be waived; therefore, you decline to waive the fee. The next day Zack collapses during visitation and subsequently dies. The medical examiner determines that the cause of death was a massive seizure.
-Would you recommend a change in policy for those with the inability to pay? Why or why not?