Ethical issues in pediatric perioperative nursing

Pediatric perioperative nurses often face ethical issues in their daily practice. Some of these issues require the ability to make a quick decision. Resources and mechanisms nurses can use to gain the knowledge required for ethical decision making are to attend ethical, legal, and clinical conferences, read ethical articles in nursing, medical, legal and ethical journals, and discuss issues with colleagues. Consultation can be obtained through ethics advisory committees and ethicists or people knowledgeable about ethics. Nurses must be able to identify ethical issues and how ethical decisions are made in order to analyze arguments critically, reflect on decisions, and examine positions. Nurses must have the ability to acknowledge and identify a conflict that exists between personal and professional values and to attempt to resolve the conflict. Perioperative nurses need to accept responsibility for their actions and take reactions based on ethical reasoning when providing patient care. By being knowledgeable of ethical issues and how to address them, pediatric perioperative nurses are better prepared to provide comprehensive nursing care to all patients and families.