A client has advance directives for a DNR code (do not ...

[NClaborn]

A client has advance directives for a DNR code (do not resuscitate). When the nurse is caring for this client, the client's wife asks him to do everything in your power to keep my husband alive.
 
  This nurse is most likely to experience which of the following moral challenges?
 
  A) Values clarification
  B) Ethical dilemma
  C) Values conflict
  D) Nonmaleficence

Question 2

A mother and a daughter are taken to the emergency room for injuries suffered in a car accident.
 
  When the mother is taken to surgery, the nurse tells her that her daughter will be fine,
  even though she does not know the exact extent of the daughter's injuries. This nurse's actions
  may have been guided by which of the following ethical theories?
 
  A) Social equity and justice
  B) Natural law
  C) Deontology
  D) Utilitarianism

[vseab]

Answer to Question 1

Ans: B
An ethical dilemma is any situation in which guiding moral principles cannot
determine which course of action is right or wrong. In this case, there is a conflict between the
client's wishes and that of his wife, a situation that causes duress for the nurse. Values
clarification, values conflict, and nonmaleficence are not at the root of the situation the nurse
faces.

Answer to Question 2

Ans: D
A central premise of utilitarianism is that an act is right when it is useful in bringing
about a desirable or good end. In this case, instilling hope in the mother may alleviate her stress
before surgery. A deontological view would condemn the nurse's actions, since deontology
proposes that ethical decision-making is based on moral rules and unchanging principles (i.e.
that lying is categorically wrong). Social equity and natural law are not reflected in the nurse's
decision to temporarily deceive the patient.