Nurses are an integral part of the medical team, as they provide the patient with comfortable conditions of stay in a medical institution. Moreover, nurses take an active role in the patient’s recovery by prescribing certain medications and procedures. In addition, nurses have many duties and rules that they must fulfill and to which they must adhere. The Medical Code of Ethics contains nine important principles, but I think there are two of the most important ones.
One of the main principles that, in my opinion, a nurse should adhere to is the principle that is to protect the rights, safety, and health of patients. Nurses should monitor that patients’ data is confidential and take part in the development of measures to protect their safety and health if the treatment is questionable and may cause harm (Berg, 2021). In practice, this principle applies if the patient’s security has been violated. Nurses must report the violation to higher authorities, and if colleagues have committed certain abuses, do not hide it and do not assist them.
This principle also includes the protection of the patient’s data. Nurses should take care of the non-disclosure of patient information, diagnosis, treatment, and other data to third parties. Nurses protect a person’s unique environment and take an active part in developing a specific policy that will work to increase patient confidentiality. In practice, this is very important since some patients may refuse to visit medical institutions because they will insist that their diagnosis can be made public or unwanted persons will find out about it. In my practice, I will ensure that patients’ data are not disclosed or made public. For example, suppose a stranger or a doubtful relative of the patient asks me to tell about the diagnosis or treatment of the patient. In that case, I will first ask the patient whether it is worth trusting such information to this person.
The second most important principle, in my opinion, is the principle of improving the quality of nursing care. Nurses are responsible for the patient’s care, as this is what is of paramount importance in their activities. In addition, they are obliged to constantly improve their knowledge of high-quality patient care to be able to ensure the fastest possible recovery of the patient. Nurses should also be loyal, dedicated, and merciful. This is because they are very responsible for each patient and their health. In my practice, I will try to make every effort to take care of patients, and constantly improve my knowledge in this matter. For example, if a patient needs a certain type of care according to their disease, I will try to provide them with exactly the help they need.
It is essential to adhere to the principle of maximizing the quality of patient care, as this plays a significant role in the patient’s recovery. High-quality care can help the patient recover faster and more effectively since it is high comfort that creates a favorable perception of the patient’s environment and affects their well-being (Berg, 2021). It is in providing reassurance that the nurse plays one of the prominent roles since it is them that patients trust and can disclose some data that will help in prescribing treatment.
In conclusion, the role of a nurse is one of the most important when working with patients. This is undoubtedly true because nurses are called upon to ensure the comfort of the patient staying at the clinic for treatment, and to choose the optimal treatment that will contribute to their recovery. The Code of Ethics regulates the duties of nurses who are maximally focused on the patient and their comfort in a medical institution. Undoubtedly, each principle of the code is necessary because it was developed taking into account all the needs of patients, but still, I have identified two that, in my opinion, are the most severe and mandatory.
Reference
Berg, S. (2021). Why the Nursing Code of Ethics matters. Incredible Health. Web.