This article explores the legal, ethical, and moral issues of three healthcare colleagues by applying the DECIDE Model as the foundation of decision making, as found in Thompson, Melia, and Boyd (2006). Issues explored will involve the actions of Registered Nurse (RN) John, his boyfriend and also Registered Nurse (RN) Jane, and Director of Nursing (DON) Ms Day. Specific areas of discussion include the five moral frameworks, autonomy, beneficence, non-maleficence, justice and truthfulness in relation to each person involved, as argued by Arnold and Boggs (2013) and McPherson (2011). The identification and review of the breached code of ethics and breached code of conduct will be addressed in reference to the Nursing, Council and Federation (2008). Finally, a brief discussion of how the three schools of thought deontology, teleology, and virtue affected each colleague (McPherson, 2011). Registered Nurse John, Registered Nurse Jane and Nursing Manager Ms Day all have the right to self-determination and to be motivated by their actions. The actions of John, Jane, and Mrs. Day are their businesses, even though nurses are not considered autonomous decision makers (Butts, 2013). Nurses are still required by law to follow instructions given to them by the medical authority and a strong argument is needed to refute this (Arnold & Boggs, 2013). RN John shows a sense of duty of care in protecting the weak and vulnerable. The impression of doing a greater good is conveyed by John in his actions of stealing medical supplies. He believes he is not doing any harm to those around him as the supplies were destined for the disposal unit anyway and are going to a good cause (McPherson, 2011). Rn Jane wants to protect...... half of the document ......Council, M., & Federation, AN (2008). Codes of professional conduct and ethics for nurses and midwives, 2008: Australian Nursing and Midwifery Council. Pergert, P., & Lützén, K. (2012). Balancing truth-telling with preserving hope: A relational ethical approach. Nursing Ethics, 19(1), 21-29. Popp, W., Rasslan, O., Unahalekhaka, A., Brenner, P., Fischnaller, E., Fathy, M., . . . Gillespie, E. (2010). What is it for? An international look at the reuse of disposable medical devices. International Journal of Hygiene and Environmental Health, 213(4), 302-307. Staunton, P., & Chiarella, M. (2012). Nursing and Midwifery Law (7th ed.): Elsevier Australia.Thompson, I.E., Melia, K.M., & Boyd, K.M. (2006). Nursing Ethics: Churchill Livingstone Elsevier.Togelius, J. (2011). A procedural critique of deontological reasoning. Article presented in the DiGRA Proceedings.
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