Nurse Whistleblower Whistleblowing in the Essay

Though still worthwhile if it leads to an improvement in nursing or medical standards, whistle-blowing can be damaging to the profession (Fritko & Jackson 2005).

Whistle-bowing can also empower nurses, however, with successful instances of whistle-blowing potentially inspiring others that had noticed wrongdoing and remained to afraid to speak out. A large part of the importance of whistle-blowing in the nursing profession stems form the fact that the cultures of many medical institutions and personnel seem to inhibit the pointing-out of misconduct, especially when it is nurses that try to call issues in operations to others' attention, and thus whistle-blowing is specifically the most needed where it will be the most actively discouraged and punished (Jones & Hoffman 2005). The more whistle-blowing occurs, the stronger and more empowered individual nurses will be in making the decision to point out issues in care provision and general conduct, and though this can have some negative repercussions in the form of communication issues and perceptions, the result of a better nursing force and a better and more accountable level of care are well worth the effort (Jones & Hoffman 2005; Fritko & Jackson 2005).

Whistle-Blowing, Patient Care, and the Nursing Code of Ethics

Nurses have a primary duty to be advocates for their patients' health and care, acting as intermediaries between the patient and other healthcare professionals when necessary (Lachman 2008). They can only do this effectively when they are allowed to point out issues in care without fear of significant reprisal, but whistle-blowing cases only serve to highlight the difficulty of this proposition (Hendren 2010). Whistle-blowing may improve the standards and quality of care, but it also indicates the need for continued patient advocacy (Hendren 2010).

The need for this advocacy is also made quite clear in the Code of Ethics for Nurses in Australia, published by the Australian Nursing Council, the Australian Nursing Federation, and the Royal College of Nursing. The first three value statements make the explicit role of whistle-blower an implicit duty of the nurse when faced with certain situations: nurses are to respect individuals' needs, protect patients' right to make informed decisions regarding their care, and ensure that the highest possible quality of nursing and overall care is provided (Code of Ethics for Nurses in Australia 2002). These three values each cover different aspects of situations when whistle-blowing might become necessary. Speaking out against situations in which patients are not respected as individuals, provided with full information regarding their care and their range of options, or are otherwise subjected to poorer quality care than they should be receiving are all issues that warrant whistle-blowing, and failing to report such issues is a breach of a nurse's ethical duty (COENA 2002).

Conclusion

There are many factors and issues that need to be considered and examined in the larger issue of whistle-blowing n the nursing profession. The space constraints of this analysis allowed only for the briefest discussion of many of these points, but it is hoped that the role and importance of whistle-blowing in the nursing profession has been made clear. It is only through following patient advocacy to such extremes that this advocacy has any real meaning or merit.

References

COENA. (2002). "Code of ethics for nurses in Australia." Accessed 23 September 2010. http://www.health.sapanta.com.au/srcn/code.pdf

Firtko, A. & Jackson, D. (2005). "Do the ends justify the means? Nursing and the dilemma of whistle-blowing." Australian Journal of Advanced Nursing 23(3).

Hendren, R. (2010). "Nurse whistle-blower case sets dangerous precedent." Health lenders media. Accessed 23 September 2010. http://www.healthleadersmedia.com/content/NRS-246273/Nurse-Whistleblower-Case-Sets-Dangerous-Precedent

Jackson, D.; Peters, K.; Andrews, S.; Edenborogh, M. & Halcomb, E. (2010). "Understanding whistleblowing: qualitative insights from nurse whistleblowers." Journal of advanced nursing 66(1), pp. 2194-201.

Jones, J. & Hoffman, T. (2005). " 'I had to act': Conversations with a whistle-blower." Australian journal of advanced nursing 23(1), pp. 4-6.

Lachman, V. (2008). "Whistle-blowers: Troublemakers or Virtuous Nurses?: What Is Whistle-blowing?" Dermatology nursing 20(5), pp. 390-3.

McDonald, S & Ahern, K. (2000). "The professional consequences of whistle-blowing by nurses." Journal f professional nursing 16(6), pp. 313-21.

McDonald, S. &…