Is it Ethical to Refuse a Patient?

Decision making is a crucial asset that a nurse should possess. The situations that nurses often finds themselves in, are devoid of the simple right and wrong ethical structure. The decisions they make may not result in legal ramifications, but can cause emotional turmoil, further enabling complications on the job.

The right to refuse a patient is both an ethical and moral dilemma, and can be one of the most important decisions a nurse will ever have to make. Societal and workplace factors may also play a role in the outcome of this decision.

Nurses are the epitome of compassion and unparalleled understanding. They are required to maintain psychological and mental balance at all times. Therefore, when the issue becomes refusing a patient or not, the nurse should make the most informed decision based on environmental factors.

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The nurse’s oath

The oath nurses take morally binds them to take care of their patients. This involves looking after them irrespective of their religion, sex, socioeconomic status, views and personality. And irrelevant to what kind of disease or other problem they are suffering from.

A nurse never knows who they will be treating next, and for what. Each patient brings with them their own personality traits, health problems, and nuances. This is why nurses receive relevant training that is insusceptible to the prejudices brought forth by different personality types.

When should a nurse refuse treating a patient?

When a nurse is sick, and that illness is potentially going to spread to their patient, then the nurse should refuse treating said patient. Any conditions or situations that would potentially worsen a patient’s recovery, should be avoided at all costs. This is especially true for sick nurses.

Is it ever ethical to refuse a patient?

There are of course extenuating circumstances which make it easier to decide you are not going to help a patient. If the patient has a serious criminal record, volatile religious beliefs, societal issues, or is abusive. Life-threatening behavior can warrant a nurse to refuse helping these patients. If the nurse is working with a relief society, then the situation can arise where they are not in a safe working environment.

These are a few examples of the many complications that arise in a nurse’s life. The complications vary according to different work specialization of nurses. It may or may not be ethical to refuse a patient, but most importantly nurses should know they are not alone. Support systems are in places for nurses in conundrums, and can always ask for suggestions and help from nursing communities and colleagues alike.

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