Patient Autonomy Comprehensive Nursing Paper Example

Patient Autonomy Comprehensive Nursing Paper Example

The principle of patient autonomy outlines that the individual patient has the liberty to freely manage their lives, through making their own rational choices. However, patients with a history of mental disorders and psychiatric treatment experience significant interferences with their autonomy when they seek mental health care services (Dutra et al., 2017). The essence of patient autonomy implies a care action where the user is the protagonist of one’s life recognizing the limits and possibilities. The presence of mental conditions does not negate the recognition of these patient potentialities.(Patient Autonomy Comprehensive Nursing Paper Example)

According to Milliken (2018), a patient’s right to self-determination (autonomy)  entails their ethical obligation of what would be best for them in the context of a specific clinical situation and what is known of their goals and values. To develop and foster ethical awareness means nurses have to remember that ethics cover all nursing actions and should not be viewed in isolation of nursing duties to promote good( beneficence) and to prevent harm( non-maleficence) even as they advocate their patient’s autonomy. A PMHNP  intent of beneficence may encounter conflict with the mental health patient autonomy necessitating the former to document the patient has demonstrated understanding of the predictable consequences of the patient’s decision to act against medical advice (Olejarczyk & Young, 2021). The practitioner must at all times remember that according to Florida Nursing Practice Laws, members of a healthcare team or the patient’s family members violate a patient’s autonomy if they pressure the patient or act on the patient’s behalf without the victim’s consent in a non-emergency situation (Toney-Butler & Martin, 2018). Additionally, Florida Nursing Laws decree that only a psychiatric nurse who meets the requirements in S. 394.455(35) may prescribe psychotropic substances in treating mental disorders.(Patient Autonomy Comprehensive Nursing Paper Example)

In the case of patients below 18 years, Sawyer & Rosenberg (2020) opine that literature exists whose findings demonstrate minors aged 14 years can understand medical information and arrive at reasoned decisions similar to those of young adults. Unlike patient autonomy in adulthood, teenagers are unlikely to activate rational decision-making abilities in emotionally fraught scenarios.  A nurse in clinical practice must be ready to utilize the principle of patient autonomy and its derivatives of informed consent and truth-telling despite the resistance that may be present (Varkey, 2021). The practitioner must appreciate that culture comprising customer beliefs, material and social traits of the patient’s racial, religious or social group is both dynamic and autonomous with changes expected as new trends emerge over the years.(Patient Autonomy Comprehensive Nursing Paper Example)

Patient autonomy as a foundational principle in psychiatric and mental health care can create dilemmas and challenges whose impact appears to jeopardize the patient’s health. Consistent recognition of these legal and ethical obligations and their implications should solely be guided by the care that supports patient goals and preferences. Nurses should therefore be empowered to act as moral agents who offer patient care in a care setting that meets the set standards at the legal, ethical, and safety level.(Patient Autonomy Comprehensive Nursing Paper Example)

References

Dutra, V. F. D., Bossato, H. R., & Oliveira, R. M. P. D. (2017). Mediating autonomy: an essential care practice in mental health. Escola Anna Nery, 21(Patient Autonomy Comprehensive Nursing Paper Example). https://www.scielo.br/j/ean/a/6xVmW9DDvbTn7TJScWRFp7M/?lang=en

Milliken, A. (2018). Ethical awareness: what it is and why it matters. Online J Issues Nurs, 23(10.3912). (Patient Autonomy Comprehensive Nursing Paper Example)https://ojin.nursingworld.org/MainMenuCategories/ANAMarketplace/ANAPeriodicals/OJIN/TableofContents/Vol-23-2018/No1-Jan-2018/Ethical-Awareness.html

Olejarczyk, J. P., & Young, M. (2021). Patient Rights And Ethics. In StatPearls [Internet]. StatPearls Publishing. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK538279/

Sawyer, K., & Rosenberg, A. R. (2020). How Should Adolescent Health Decision-Making Authority Be Shared?. AMA Journal of Ethics, 22(5), 372-379(Patient Autonomy Comprehensive Nursing Paper Example). https://journalofethics.ama-assn.org/article/how-should-adolescent-health-decision-making-authority-be-shared/2020-05

Toney-Butler, T. J., & Martin, R. L. (2018). Florida Nursing Laws and Rules. (Patient Autonomy Comprehensive Nursing Paper Example)https://europepmc.org/article/nbk/nbk532859

Varkey, B. (2021). Principles of clinical ethics and their application to practice. Medical Principles and Practice, 30(1), 17-28(Patient Autonomy Comprehensive Nursing Paper Example). https://www.karger.com/Article/FullText/509119