[Conflicts between nursing ethics and health care legislation in Spain]

To identify the ethical conflicts that may arise between the nursing codes of ethics and the Royal Decree-law 16/2012 modifying Spanish health regulations.

We conducted a review and critical analysis of the discourse of five nursing codes of ethics from Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain, Europe and International, and of the discourse of the Spanish legislation in force in 2013. Language structures referring to five different concepts of the theoretical framework of care were identified in the texts: equity, human rights, right to healthcare, access to care, and continuity of care.

Codes of ethics define the function of nursing according to equity, acknowledgement of human rights, right to healthcare, access to care and continuity of care, while legal discourse hinges on the concept of beneficiary or being insured.

The divergence between the code of ethics and the legal discourse may produce ethical conflicts that negatively affect nursing practice. The application of RDL 16/2012 promotes a framework of action that prevents nursing professionals from providing care to uninsured collectives, which violates human rights and the principles of care ethics.