The nurse's role on ethics committees and as an ethics consultant

Nurses share in the moral responsibility of their institution to ensure that the best ethical decision-making process is in place to meet patient needs, uphold the philosophy of the institution, and preserve the integrity of the profession. With health care reform under way, clinical ethical decision making will be even more difficult and complex than it is now. As members of ethics committees, nurses have a role to share their unique perspective. Nursing's prolonged contact with the patient, therapeutic communication skills, and goal-oriented approach facilitate the ethical decision-making process and make nurses well-suited to participate on ethics committees. This article discusses the role of the nurse on an ethics committee and, briefly, the advanced practice nurse as an ethics consultant.