What is a major ethical issue facing the profession of nursing?

with the pros and cons?

I'd say the #1 ethical issue in nursing is patient/elder abuse. The Senate Committee on Aging estimates that there are 10 million cases each year, but only about 10% of those get reported through the proper channels.

To be fair the majority of these aren't really the caregiver's fault. When you have 8 patients on a high-acuity wing you have to rush. Sometimes you have to speak in a stern voice or transfer a patient quickly even though it may cause them minor pain. You might not have time to change Mr. William's diaper AND dispense meds at the correct time. There are a million examples.

The nurse to patient ratio is set by management based on numbers, not on quality of care - then the caregiver's are expected to somehow make it work.

You know the old saying, "I can either do it fast or I can do it well."

My sister is a nurse and tells me that the #1 ethical issue taht she is aware of is time management.

There are too few nurses per facility and not enought time to do the job they deserve. While she is great at her job and know how to get it all done, she says that new nurses just out of school are being just thrown into the job and are pressured to cut corners to save time

Also my husband helped out in a home for disabled men and the same issue. Lack of resources to provide the care they deserve.

Nurse/patient ratios. There should be manditory ratios in place for the safety of patients (and nurses) instead of $$$$.

Crazy politics, other nurses, back stabbing, not enough staff, no back up support, poor managers who some are lunatics, putting the blame on others, meanness. Most Nurses leave the profession because of all of the above. It seems to be a nurse these days you must also be a glutton for punishment, causes they weed out the really good nurses and abuse them till they leave, and the other drones hate their job but do it because they are making good money but put up with all the bull sh...You will always have the girls with big dreams who wanted to be a nurse all their life and go to nursing school and fulfill that dream only to find themselves in a world of lack of compassion and support for what they do. That is the real reason for the shortage of nurses. Money will always attract so paying them well will work for awhile but now with all the other jobs paying so well who wants to do all that work for all that suffering.

The number one ethical issue facing the nursing profession is union membership. In the "contracted" environment, nurses are encouraged to view the profession more like shift-work, and poor performing nurses are protected by a seniority system vs.performance or competence measures.

If in doubt, see if you can track down a copy of a labor contract for nursing and read through it. You will find more emphasis on the nurse-not the patient and on seniority-not patient care.

A nurse should be a health care professional and act like one. Many nurses meet this standard by putting in the time it takes to do the job right and offering kindness and compassion in the process. Others, nurses want to turn the job into just a means for a paycheck and the patient is just what they have to put up with to get it.

There is a difference and nursing will have to come to grips with which track it will take. I for one hope it remains a profession and that the vast majority reject the unionized nursing goal of patient care as a glorified production job.