Ethical Issues Perceived by Nurses Involved in Endoscopic Practices in Japan

Area of Science:

• Nursing Ethics
• Healthcare Management
• Patient Care

Background:

• Endoscopy departments prioritize efficiency, potentially compromising patient-centered nursing care.
• Ethical issues in endoscopic nursing are under-explored despite time constraints and structured workflows.

Purpose of the Study:

• To identify and clarify the ethical issues perceived by nurses in endoscopic practices.
• To explore the challenges faced by nurses in delivering individualized care within endoscopy settings.

Main Methods:

• Qualitative study involving 14 nurses from 3 Japanese hospitals.
• Semi-structured interviews and qualitative content analysis were employed for data collection and analysis.

Main Results:

• Eight key ethical issues were identified: physical restraints, unalleviated pain, undervalued autonomy, privacy concerns, professional uncertainty, inability to provide ideal care, lack of respect for nurses, and inequity in care delivery.
• Common challenges include inadequate informed consent, sedation, time constraints, and physician-centered hierarchies.

Conclusions:

• Endoscopy departments must address ethical challenges to improve patient-centered care.
• Recommendations include enhancing ethical sensitivity, fostering collaboration, developing patient-centered systems, and setting ethical practice goals.