ethics and values

Question 1

Four patients in labor all request epidural analgesia to manage their pain at the same time.
Which ethical principle is most compromised when only one nurse anesthetist is on call?
a. Justice
b. Fidelity
c. Beneficence
d. Nonmaleficence

Answer 1

Justice

Question 2

The patient reports to the nurse of being afraid to speak up regarding a desire to end care for
fear of upsetting spouse and children. Which principle in the nursing code of ethics ensures
that the nurse will promote the patient’s cause?
a. Advocacy
b. Responsibility
c. Confidentiality
d. Accountability

Answer 2

Advocacy

Question 3

. The patient’s son requests to view documentation in the medical record. What is the nurse’s
best response to this request?
a. ―I’ll be happy to get that for you.‖
b. ―You are not allowed to look at it.‖
c. ―You will need your mother’s permission.‖
d. ―I cannot let you see the chart without a doctor’s order.‖

Answer 3

You will need your mothers permission

Question 4

When professionals work together to solve ethical dilemmas, nurses must examine their own
values. What is the best rationale for this step?
a. So fact is separated from opinion.
b. So different perspectives are respected.
c. So judgmental attitudes can be provoked.
d. So the group identifies the one correct solution.

Answer 4

so different perspectives are respected

Question 5

. A nurse is experiencing an ethical dilemma with a patient. Recognizing what information as a
factor indicates the nurse has a correct understanding of the primary cause of ethical
dilemmas?
a. Unequal power
b. Presence of conflicting values
c. Judgmental perceptions of patients
d. Poor communication with the patient

Answer 5

presence of conflicting values

Question 6

The nurse questions a health care provider’s decision to not tell the patient about a cancer
diagnosis. Which ethical principle is the nurse trying to uphold for the patient?
a. Consequentialism
b. Autonomy
c. Fidelity
d. Justice

Answer 6

Autonomy

Question 7

The nurse finds it difficult to care for a patient whose advance directive states that no
extraordinary resuscitation measures should be taken. Which step may help the nurse to find
resolution in this assignment?
a. Review one’s own personal values.
b. Call for an ethical committee consult.
c. Decline the assignment on religious grounds.
d. Convince the family to challenge the directive.

Answer 7

review one’s on ethical committee consult

Question 8

. The nurse values autonomy above all other principles. Which patient assignment will the
nurse find most difficult to accept?
a. Older-adult patient who requires dialysis.
b. Teenager in labor who requests epidural anesthesia.
c. Middle-aged father of three with an advance directive declining life support.
d. Family elder who is making the decisions for a young-adult female member.

Answer 8

family elder who is making the decisions for a young adult female member

Question 9

A nurse must make an ethical decision concerning vulnerable patient populations. Which
philosophy of health care ethics would be particularly useful for this nurse?
a. Teleology
b. Deontology
c. Utilitarianism
d. Feminist ethics

Answer 9

Feminist ethics

Question 10

A nurse agrees with regulations for mandatory immunizations of children. The nurse believes
that immunizations prevent diseases as well as prevent spread of the disease to others. Which
ethical framework is the nurse using?
a. Deontology
b. Ethics of care
c. Utilitarianism
d. Feminist ethics

Answer 10

utilitarianism

Question 11

. The nurse has become aware of missing narcotics in the patient care area. Which ethical
principle obligates the nurse to report the missing medications?
a. Advocacy
b. Responsibility
c. Confidentiality
d. Accountability

Answer 11

Responsibility

Question 12

A young woman who is pregnant with a fetus exposed to multiple teratogens consents to have
her fetus undergo serial PUBS (percutaneous umbilical blood sampling) to examine how
exposure affects the fetus over time. Although these tests will not improve the fetus’s
outcomes and will expose it to some risks, the information gathered may help infants in the
future. Which ethical principle is at greatest risk?
a. Fidelity
b. Autonomy
c. Beneficence
d. Nonmaleficence

Answer 12

nonmalficence

Question 13

A nurse is discussing quality of life issues with another colleague. Which topic will the nurse
acknowledge for increased attention paid to quality-of-life concerns?
a. Health care disparities
b. Aging of the population
c. Abilities of disabled persons
d. Health care financial reform

Answer 13

Abilities of disabled persons

Question 14

. Which action by the nurse indicates a safe and efficient use of social networks?
a. Promotes support for a local health charity.
b. Posts a picture of a patient’s infected foot.
c. Vents about a patient problem at work.
d. Friends a patient.

Answer 14

promotes support for a local health charity

Question 15

The nurse is caring for a dying patient. Which intervention is considered futile?
a. Giving pain medication for pain
b. Providing oral care every 5 hours
c. Administering the influenza vaccine
d. Supporting lower extremities with pillows

Answer 15

administering the influenza vaccine

Question 16

During a severe respiratory epidemic, the local health care organizations decide to give health
care workers priority access to ventilators over other members of the community who also
need that resource. Which philosophy would give the strongest support for this decision?
a. Deontology
b. Utilitarianism
c. Ethics of care
d. Feminist ethics

Answer 16

utilitarianism

Question 17

A nurse is teaching a patient and family about quality of life. Which information should the
nurse include in the teaching session about quality of life?
a. It is deeply social.
b. It is hard to define and deeply personal.
c. It is an observed measurement for most people.
d. It is consistent and stable over the course of one’s lifetime.

Answer 17

it is hard to define and deeply personal

Question 18

The nurse is caring for a patient supported with a ventilator who has been unresponsive since
arrival via ambulance 8 days ago. The patient has not been identified, and no family members
have been found. The nurse is concerned about the plan of care regarding maintenance or
withdrawal of life support measures. Place the steps the nurse will use to resolve this ethical
dilemma in the correct order.
1. The nurse identifies possible solutions or actions to resolve the dilemma.
2. The nurse reviews the medical record, including entries by all health care disciplines, to
gather information relevant to this patient’s situation.
3. Health care providers use negotiation to redefine the patient’s plan of care.
4. The nurse evaluates the plan and revises it with input from other health care providers as
necessary.
5. The nurse examines the issue to clarify opinions, values, and facts.
6. The nurse states the problem.
7. Nurse confirms that the problem is ethical in nature.
a. 6, 7, 1, 2, 5, 4, 3
b. 5, 6, 7, 2, 3, 4, 1
c. 1, 2, 5, 4, 7, 3, 6
d. 7, 2, 5, 6, 1, 3, 4

Answer 18

7,2,5.6.1.3.4

Question 19

A nurse is a member of the ethics committee. Which roles will the nurse fulfill in this
committee? (Select all that apply.)
a. Educator
b. Case consultant
c. Purchasing Agent
d. Direct patient care provider
e. Policy reviewer and recommender

Answer 19

educator, case consultant, policy reviewer and recommender