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Ethical Conflicts and Legal Liability in Professional Nursing

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The Medical-Legal Aspects of Acute Care Medicine

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Abstract

When one thinks of the nursing profession, many images often come to mind: the reservoir of knowledge, the supportive listener, the thoughtful caretaker, or the quick-thinking multitasker, to name a few. With a continually increasing acuity seen in the patient population, combined with a widening gap in the nursing shortage, nurses are having to face new challenges and adapt to new roles. With a rapidly evolving profession come newfound responsibilities; and an ever-increasing number of nurses are faced with ethical and legal conflicts throughout employment. Specifically, as a critical care nurse, it is not uncommon to encounter multiple ethical or legal debacles within one 12-hour shift (Gutierrez KM, Dimens Crit Care Nurs. 24:229–241, 2005). In the coming pages, we will explore examples of ethical dilemmas among critical care nurses and how ethics and legal liability are beginning to shape the field of nursing.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Surgical Intensive Care Unit, Rochester General Hospital, Rochester Regional Health System, St. John Fisher College AGACNP Candidate, Rochester, NY, USA

    Taylor Hughes

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  1. Taylor Hughes
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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Director, Surgical and Neurocritical Care Units, Rochester Regional Health System at Rochester General Hospital, Rochester, NY, USA

    James E. Szalados

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Hughes, T. (2021). Ethical Conflicts and Legal Liability in Professional Nursing. In: Szalados, J.E. (eds) The Medical-Legal Aspects of Acute Care Medicine. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-68570-6_18

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-68570-6_18

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