Related Experiment Video
Updated: May 22, 2026

Setup and Execution Of the Blindfolded Code Training Exercise
Published on: March 29, 2019
Patients' silence following healthcare staff's ethical transgressions
A Jelmer Brüggemann1, Barbro Wijma, Katarina Swahnberg
1Department of Clinical and Experimental Medicine, Faculty of Health Sciences, Linköping University, Sweden. jelmer.bruggemann@liu.se
The aim of this study was to examine to what extent patients remained silent to the health care system after they experienced abusive or wrongful incidents in health care. Female patients visiting a women's clinic in Sweden (n = 530) answered the transgressions of ethical principles in Health care questionnaire (TEP), which was constructed to measure patients' abusive experiences in the form of staff's transgressions of ethical principles in health care. Of all the patients, 63.6% had, at some point, experienced staff's transgressions of ethical principles, and many perceived these events as abusive and wrongful. Of these patients, 70.3% had remained silent to the health care system about at least one transgression. This silence is a loss of essential feedback for the health care system and should not automatically be interpreted as though patients are satisfied.
The aim of this study was to examine to what extent patients remained silent to the health care system after they experienced abusive or wrongful incidents in health care. Female patients visiting a women's clinic in Sweden (n = 530) answered the transgressions of ethical principles in Health care questionnaire (TEP), which was constructed to measure patients' abusive experiences in the form of staff's transgressions of ethical principles in health care. Of all the patients, 63.6% had, at some point, experienced staff's transgressions of ethical principles, and many perceived these events as abusive and wrongful. Of these patients, 70.3% had remained silent to the health care system about at least one transgression. This silence is a loss of essential feedback for the health care system and should not automatically be interpreted as though patients are satisfied.
Related Concept Videos
Ethical Standards II
Nurses are entrusted with upholding various ethical principles and standards. Nurses forge solid therapeutic relationships using trust, empathy, autonomy, confidentiality, and professional competence.
Confidentiality is crucial, embodying respect for individual privacy and...
Ethical Issues
Ethical Concerns in Healthcare:
Ethical Standards I
The Code of Ethics provisions outline the nurse's duty to the patient, the healthcare team, the profession, and society. The Code's fundamental principles include advocacy,...
Ethics and Bioethics
Obedience
Nursing Ethical Principles II
Consider the following scenario, which illustrates how these principles are applied in the care of Mr. John, a fifty-year-old teacher diagnosed with metastatic liver cancer.
Initially, Mr. John's cancer...
