The forgotten patient. Do we really care what the birthing mother thinks, feels, and needs?

Nurses are essential in patient care, upholding the ethical principles of their profession and effectively navigating ethical dilemmas. Neglecting ethical issues can lead to inadequate patient care, compromised therapeutic relationships, and moral distress among healthcare workers.
Ethical Concerns in Healthcare:

Patient-centered care involves delivering care beyond inpatient hospitalization. Reflective practice can enhance a patient-centered approach. Reflective practice is a process of reasoning that considers all aspects of the present situation, including practicalities, learning from personal practice, and consideration of patient needs. Patients appreciate care decisions made while considering their input. Involving the patient in their care provides the patient with a sense of contribution rather...

Ethical dilemmas in nursing are of utmost importance, as they often arise from the tension between adhering to core ethical principles and the practical realities of healthcare delivery. These dilemmas require nurses to navigate complex situations where competing ethical considerations pull them in different directions.
Let us explore some examples to understand the potentially complex moral decisions nurses face.
Take the case of caring for minors, particularly in areas related to reproductive...

Theories play an essential role in organizing patient care. Theories refer to a proposed or followed belief, policy, or procedure that is the basis for action. Nursing theories are knowledge-based concepts that guide nurses' actions, influence nursing education and practice, and allow nurses to care for their patients.
Theories provide a perspective to assess patients' conditions and organize data and methods. They also assist in analyzing and interpreting information. They represent a...

The factors influencing the health-illness continuum can be internal or external and may or may not be under conscious control. They are related to the following eight human dimensions, and each dimension is interrelated to one other.

The nursing process provides a clinical decision-making framework for patients and families to establish and implement a personalized care plan. Since part of the nurse's duties is to teach patients, the steps of the nursing process are the most effective way to approach instruction. The nursing process and the teaching-learning process are inextricably linked.
It is critical to determine the patient's learning needs during the assessment. Determination of learning needs compounds data...