Professional Issues

1
Professional Issues

• Truthfulness, Self-Regulation, Professional
  Conduct, Whistle Blowing, Substance Abuse

2
Veracity Truthfulness

• Truthfulness and Beneficence
• Truthfulness and Autonomy
• Important not to force information on clients
• Remember cultural values
• Generational differences

3
Nursing self-regulation

• Acknowledges that a profession itself is most
  suited to determine standards for education and
  practice and ensure they are met

4
Nursing Governing Bodies

• Set practice standards, Codes of Ethics and
  provide benchmarks against which professional
  practice may be measured
• Serve as watchdogs
• Promote welfare of public re nursing profession

5
Principles that guide self-regulation

• Promoting good practice
• Preventing undesirable practice
• Intervening in instances of unacceptable practice

6
Promoting good practice

• Establishing and monitoring standards
• Promoting evidence-based practice that is safe,
  competent and ethical
• Influencing healthy public policy

7
Preventing undesirable practice

• Ensuring beginning level competencies
• Developing continuing competency requirements
• Code of Ethics for practice
• Licensure examinations

8
Professional Misconduct

• Any matter, conduct or thing, whether or not
  disgraceful or dishonorable, that is contrary to
  the best interests of the public or nurses or
  which tends to harm the standing of the profession

9
Examples of Prof. Misconduct

• abuse of client or health team member (verbal,
  physical or sexual)
• discontinuation of services unless client has
  requested alternative services arranged or
  client given reasonable opportunity to arrange
  alternative services
• failure to respect confidentiality

10
More examples

• Falsification of client record
• Influencing or attempting to influence clients
  last will and testament
• Theft of drugs or property
• Failure to report to CRNM incompetence of a
  colleague which jeopardized client safety
• Inappropriate use of professional status for
  personal gain

11
Conduct unbecoming to a member

• Relates to behavior or conduct while not in the
  practice of nursing.
• (eg letter to editor that violates a portion of
  Code of Ethics)
• When a nurses conduct seriously impacts on the
  integrity of the profession, CRNM is justified in
  making a finding of conduct unbecoming

12
Complaints, Investigation, and Discipline

• safety of the public takes precedence over
  interests of the nurse or profession
• CRNM recd 65 complaints in 2002
• Professional Conduct Review (PCR) assesses
  allegations of unacceptable conduct practice

13
Discipline Committee

• Investigation, hearing, decision
• Discipline hearings open to the public -
  reflection of CRNMs accountability
• RN subject to an inquiry is entitled to legal
  counsel

14
Substance Abuse

• Problem typically concealed
• By time abuse observable in workplace, usually
  well-established problem
• May be behavioral signs, changes in job
  performance, indications that drug source is
  within the workplace
• Watch for pattern of symptoms

15
Collegial Enabling

• overlooking mistakes, absences, tardiness,
  inappropriate behaviors

16
Collegial Responsibilities

• Documentation factual, detailed
• Report to immediate supervisor or manager

17
Managerial responsibilities

• Data Collection
• Documentation
• Reporting - obligation to report to CRNM if
  possibility of danger to the public

18
Whistle blowing

• Whistleblowers are people who expose negligence,
  abuses or dangers, such as professional
  misconduct or incompetence, which exists in the
  workplace

19
Whistle Blowing

• Serious harm to clients, employees, or public is
  likely
• Start by reporting to immediate superiors
• Move up the hierarchy if no action