Taking a Stand (Leadership) In nursing, one is bound to encounter a wide range of moral and ethical challenges. This is more so the case given that as nurses, we often have to work with various kinds of people, often during challenging moments in their lives. All these people have personal expectations and demands. Trying to balance these demands and harmonize the various needs of those we come across could be a challenge. This is more so the case given that we also have to take into consideration the interests of other stakeholders in the entire care-giving equation. In the final analysis, this means that from time to time, we encounter situations that call upon us to reconcile our nursing profession duties and obligations with our personal or individual values. It should be noted that when it comes to navigating the ethical and moral minefield, the relevance of the nursing code of ethics cannot be overstated. In addition to helping us address moral dilemmas deep within ourselves, the nursing code of ethics comes in handy in seeking to avert malpractice litigation or disciplinary issues. It is important to note that although not all moral and ethical challenges can be solved or sorted out by way of making references to the nursing code of ethics, familiarizing oneself with the same does indeed make things easier towards this end. According to Smith, Carpenter, and Fitzpatrick (2015), ethical decision making capabilities develop over time. Our hope, therefore, also lays in constant exposure to circumstances or situations that challenge us from an ethical or moral point of view. This text examines a moral dilemma encountered by the author and analyses the legal as well as ethical and moral implications the dilemma posed. The role of the author as a moral agent in the entire situation, and the...

Some of these were easier to solve upon reflection, while others posed a real challenge. The most challenging, and perhaps the most memorable ethical/moral dilemma I have faced in recent times involved two of my colleagues at work. In addition to sheer incompetence, the said peers were often extremely rude to patients and their visitors, and often neglected basic duties or roles of care. While one was a habitual drunk and would often show up for his shifts reeking of alcohol, the other was a loner who appeared to have stress and anxiety issues. From time to time, they both reported for shifts late and were dismissive of simple requests of patients. The loner colleague was particularly notorious for being rude to relatives and friends of patents. She appeared to deem enquiries on the progress of patients as a bother of some sort and would be quite dismissive in her responses. In one particular instance, the drunk colleague misread an 800 mg phenytoin IV as 1800 mg. It was through sheer luck that he was stopped by a colleague moments before proceeding with administration of the same. It is important to note that in this case, the said phenytoin was only available in 250 mg/1 mL vials. In that regard therefore, what my colleague ought to have had in the IV bag was an equivalent of 3.2 mL which would have taken a total of four vials. Had my colleague proceeded with the administration, the patient would have most likely died of an overdose. This incident was not reported.
In this case involving my workmates (and teammates), I had the option of either reporting my two colleagues or simply staying quiet. It is important to…