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7: The Ethics of Practicing Faith Community Nursing

DOI:

10.1891/9780826107138.0007

Abstract

Ethical decisions in faith community nursing are guided by professional elements, and theological and personal elements. Professional ethical codes provide guidelines for appropriate ethical decision making and set the standards of conduct for practicing ethically in a specific discipline. The American Nurses Association (ANA) Code for Nurses with Interpretive Statements provides ethical standards for nursing practice, research, and education, and makes the profession’s primary goals, values, and obligations explicit. Fowler states that faith community nurses (FCNs) face much the same fundamental ethical issues as nurses in other health care settings. The ethic of care relates to reciprocal human relationships and connections, preserving personhood, alleviating vulnerability, and is a moral ideal in itself. Advances in health care and technology have created new challenges and ethical dilemmas. In nursing practice, ethical decision making is further complicated by sociocultural factors, legal controversies, and consumer involvement in health care.