Stem Cell Research and Nursing

Stem Cell Research and Nursing

Nursing professionals and medical experts predict that modern nursing has a complex future that it has to come to terms with. This is mainly due to the modern technological advancements in the field of medicine, advanced technology and the developments in medicine and science; which have meant that there are new methods, techniques and problems that the modern nurse has to face and understand. It should be remembered that nursing as a profession is intimately linked and connected to what happens in the larger medical and scientific environment and the modern nurse has not only be aware of these issue but has to incorporate them into his or her everyday working life.

These challenges are part of the inescapable landscape of modern nursing. As Luptak (2004) states;

the latter part of the 20th century introduced complexities because of longer life expectancy, technological developments, and new legal choices, the 21st century is likely to bring more bewildering changes...As new technologies and new decision points emerge, the profession needs to be ready to...take a stand on policy and practice issues that are on the radar screen, such as physician-assisted suicide, euthanasia, cloning for body parts, and placing societal limits on individual autonomy. (Luptak, 2004)

This implies that issues that are at the forefront of medical science and healthcare, such as cloning and stem cell research, are aspects that have a direct and important impact on nursing theory as well as on nursing practice. This also means that issues that cause debate and concern in society will also have to be dealt with by the modern nurse. For instance, the issue of cloning and stem cell research has been the case of debate in many different disciples. People in many different walks of life and in many professions are worried about the moral and ethical implications or results of modern cloning and the use or misuse of stem cell research. Those in the nursing profession have to not only be aware of these various ethical problems but also have to deal with them and often decide on their own attitudes and position with regard to these issues. Another aspect that also should be considered in a discussion stem cell research and nursing is the way that nursing has changed and has become more " holistic" and open to new methods and procedures.

2. Understanding Stem cell research

Stem cell research is part of the ongoing and often very heated debate about cloning. It is also one of the most controversial areas of new medical technology. This is mainly due to the conflict between the medical value and promises that stem cell research makes and the ethical and moral concerns that it raises.

Very briefly, stem cells are those cells that are undifferentiated or as yet undivided in the growing embryo or fetus. These are cells that can grow into any organ of the body. In other words they are the "master" or beginning cells that are responsible for the growth and development of the human body and organs. A more complete definition of stem cells is as follows.

Stem cells have been called "the essence of an embryo." They are biological building blocks that serve as the common ancestry of all 210 different kinds of tissue in the human body. Stem cells grow and specialize to form the heart, skin, and other organs" (Stevens, 2003).

For example a stem cell can be found in the blood or the marrow as well as the various organs of the fetus.

The excitement about stem cell research is because these stem cells can be used to replace or repair organs that have been damaged through illness or diseases. They also have the added advantage of not being easily rejected by the host or person receiving the stem cells. This means that for the doctor or medical expert stem cells are a way of curing diseases which were previous incurable. Diseases such as Parkinson's disease, for example, may be cured through the use of stem cell research technology. Parkinson's disease is due to the lack of a substance in the brain known as dopamine. The theory of stem cell research is that the lack of this substance can be remedied by stem cells which will be able to create dopamine and therefore cure the patient.

Scientists are eager to pursue embryonic stem cell research because they believe that stem cells can be used to help improve the health of approximately 128 million Americans afflicted with various diseases.... scientists believe stem cells have the potential to treat Alzheimer's and Parkinson's diseases, spinal cord injuries, heart disease, and multiple sclerosis. Insulin-producing pancreatic beta cells could be transplanted into diabetic patients. (Stevens, 2003)

This would mean that millions of people in the world could possibly be cured of their illnesses, ailments and diseases through the use of stem cell research. Stem cell research therefore has many positive aspects that medical doctors and nurses are aware of. The general public is also aware of the possibilities of stem cell research. Well - known actor Michael J. Fox, who suffers for Parkinson's disease, as well as other celebrities, have even approached Congress to ask for support for increased funding for stem cell research. (Stevens, 2003) on the other hand it should also be understood that stem cell research has not yet been proven to effective and it is still only potentially a cure for disease.

Many experts believe that a clinical success for embryonic stem cell therapies is still a long shot. "With embryonic stem cells, it looks like we're a ways off from being ready for prime time in man," said the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation's Lomedico. Added Grompe, "Long-term, I think there will be some therapeutic benefit, but I mean really long-term. (Hall, 2006)

However, the issue of stem cell research is not only a medical one and the moral and ethical problems that this new technology faces are very difficult and an issue that also face the modern nurse. As one expert states:

In the current debate on the new possibilities of modern biotechnology there is more at stake than just the pros and contras of a certain scientific method or procedure. It has, in fact, to do with a possible change in ethical culture, questioning the validity of fundamental ethical values which have so far been embedded in a broad societal consensus. (Bedford-Strohm, 2002)

The central problem that many people see with stem cell research is that the cells are taken for a dead fetus or embryo. In other words, extracting stem cells from the fetus in fact kills that fetus. This debate is therefore very close to the debate about abortion and asks questions such as, when can be the fetus be considered to be 'alive' and when is it morally justifiable to destroy the fetus.

Many of the modern organized religions such as the Catholic Church see stem cell research as going against the sanctity of human life and many religious groups tend to disagree with stem cell research on moral grounds. These groups argue that benefiting from the destruction of a human embryo is a moral and human crime.

There are many other moral and ethical issues as well as questions about the application of stem cell research and the way that it may affect social structures like the family and parenthood. Opponents of stem cell research claim that this technology may be used for commercial purposes and the selling of body parts that have been developed by stem cell research. On the other had medical experts point to the benefits that this research may produce and which has the potential to cure many disease that are incurable today. We will not go too deeply into these many often complex arguments. The important point is that stem cell research raises many questions that the modern profession nurse cannot avoid or ignore. The modern nurse works in a changing and developing environment where issues like stem cell research play an important part.

3. Stem cell research and the nursing profession

It is obvious for the above discussion that nurses and especially those in advanced nursing are in the forefront of the debate as well as the implications of stem cell research. There has therefore been a large amount of debate in the nursing profession about the pos and cons of stem cell research. Many studies have been concerned with the various ways in which nurses are affected by the issue of stem cell research. For example the implications for nursing are discussed in an article entitled the Controversy Surrounding Stem Cell Research by Barbara a. McCloskey, RN, in which the ways that "...nursing researchers and nurses as health policy analysts can contribute to the political debate on stem cell research" are noted (McCloskey, 2002, p.4). Many other articles and studies mention the way that the controversy about stem cell research has affected nursing.

In fact nursing as a profession is changing to accommodate to the new technologies that affect it. This often means expanding the role of the nurse in the modern medical environment. One of the most important signs of the way that nursing has changed to deal with the problems and possibilities of cloning and stem cell research is that nurses have become more "genetically aware." This means that the issue of genetics and stem cell research has become part of the knowledge that is required of a modern nurse.

Now that sequencing the human genome is completed, nurses are challenged with applying this genetic information to nursing practice. Nursing has moved from the "old genetics" to the "new genetics," with the recognition that common diseases such as cancer and heart disease result from complex interactions between genetic factors and a variety of environmental exposures that trigger, accelerate, or exacerbate the disease process. (Greco E. 2003)

This means that nurses have become more aware of the issues, problems and methods that are related to stem cell research and cloning and this has also changed the way that they work. As Greco (2003) states: "The role of nurses in genetics has changed dramatically over the past 50 years. Nurses have been involved in genetic counseling and education since the 1960s... Nurses have a long history of caring for individuals and families at risk for or diagnosed with genetic conditions" (Greco E. 2003) This also suggests that nursing has adopted a more wide-ranging and inclusive attitude in its professional approach and includes many aspect that in the past would not have seen to be a part of the nursing profession.