CODE OF ETHICS

INTRODUCTION

Within any given profession, a code of ethics serves as a means of

self regulation and a source of guidelines for individual behavior and
responsibility. Professional code of ethics is system of rules and
principles by which that profession is expected to regulate its members
and demonstrate its responsibility to society.
An ethical code is adopted by an organization in an attempt to assist
those in the organization called upon to make a decision (usually most, if
not all) understand the difference between right and wrong and to apply
this understanding to their decision.
A code of ethics often focuses on social issues. It may set out general
principles about organizations beliefs on matters such as mission,
quality, privacy or the environment. It may delineate proper procedures
to determine whether a violate of the code of ethics has occurred and, if
so, what remedies should be imposed.
Ethics word is derived from the word “Ethos”. It is a Greek word and
meaning of this word is customs, character or conduct.

DEFINITION
A formal statement of a group’s ideas and values; a set of
ethical principles shared by members of a group, reflecting their moral
judgments and serving as a standard for professional actions.
-Barbara Kozier-
“A specific set of professional behaviors and values the
professional interpreter must know and must abide by, including
confidentiality, accuracy, privacy, integrity”.

1
PURPOSES
 To inform both the nurse and the society of the minimum standard
for professional conduct.
 It provides regulatory bodies a basis for decisions regarding
standards of professional conduct.
 Protect the rights of individuals, families and community and also
the rights of the Nurse.

TYPES OF ETHICS
The code of ethics links to and gives rise to a code of conduct for
employees. 1. Employee Ethics 2.Professional Ethics
 EMPLOYEE ETHICS
• A code of conduct is a document designed to influence the behavior of
employees.
• They set out the procedures to be used in specific ethical situations
• The effectiveness of such codes of ethics depends on the extent to
which management supports them with sanctions and rewards.
• Violations of a code of conduct may subject the violator to the
organizations remedies which can under particular circumstances result
in the termination of employment.
 PROFESSIONAL ETHICS
• A code of practice is adopted by a profession or by a governmental or
non-governmental organization to regulate that profession.
• A code of practice may be styled as a  code of professional
responsibility, which will discuss difficult issues, difficult decisions that
will often need to be made, and provide a clear account of what behavior
is considered "ethical" or "correct" or "right" in the circumstances.

USES OF THE CODE

• Acknowledges the rightful place of Individuals in health care delivery
system.
• Contributes towards empowerment of individuals to become
responsible for their health and well-being.
• Contributes to quality care.
2
• Identifies obligations in practice, research and relationships.
• Informs the individuals, families, community and other professionals
about expectations of a nurse.

ETHICAL PRINCIPLES
Ethical principles actually control professionalism nursing practice much
more than to ethical theories. Principles are the moral norms that
nursing, as a profession both demands to implement to every day clinical
practice.
Ethical principles are:
 Respect for persons
 Respect for autonomy
 Respect for freedom
 Respect for beneficence( doing good )
 Respect for nonmaleficence ( avoiding harm to others )
 Respect for veracity (truth telling)
 Respect for justice (fair and equal treatment)
 Respect for Rights
 Respect for fidelity (fulfilling promises)
 Confidentiality (protecting privileged information
RESPECT FOR PERSONS: Respect for only applies to clinical
situations, but also to all lifes situation.
It directs individuals to treat themselves and other, with a respect
inherent to man’s humanness.
The respect to persons needs to be simplified as it affects nursing
practice.

RESPECT FOR AUTNOMY: Autonomy that individuals are able to

act for themselves to the level of their capacity.
It is the right of individual to govern their actions according to their
own purpose and reason.
Respects for autonomy require that persons honor another rights to
govern himself or herself.

3
 The followings are required for a patient to give informed consent for
either:
Disclosure: Adequate presentation of relevant information about the
proposed treatment or study.
Understanding: Adequate comprehension of the disclosed information.
Voluntary agreement: Free assent, influenced by external controlling
factors.
Competence: Adequate decision making capacity. There are three type
of autonomy, i.e. freedom of action, freedom of choice and effective
deliberation.

RESPECT FOR FREED0M; The principle of individual freedom

decrease that patients be exempt from control by others to select and
pursue personal health goals.
Nurses as a group believe that patient should have greater freedom of
choice within the nations healthcare system.
This principle should be observed by staff nurses when planning
patient care; by nurse manager when leading subordinates.
RESPECT FOR BENEFICENCE: The beneficence principles states
that the actions one takes should promote good.
It requires the balancing of harms and benefits.
Benefits promotes the client welfare and health , where as harms (or)
risks from the client health an welfare.
In other words, providing benefits that enhance the others welfare.
Professional education provides an awareness that most nursing
interventions are capable of producing undesirable as well as desirable,
patient outcome.

RESPECT FOR NONMALEFICENCE: The corollary of

beneficence the principle of nonmaleficence states that one should do no
harm.
The nurse should interpret the term harm to mean emotional and
social as well as physical injury.

4
 Many nurses find it difficult to follow the principles when performing
treatment and procedures that bring discomfort and pain to patient.
As nurse manager performing performance evaluation of
subordinates should emphasize their good qualities and give positive
direction for growth.
Destroying the employees self –esteem and self worth would be
considered doing harm their principles.

RESPECT FOR VERACITY: It concern truth telling an incorporates

the concept the individuals should always tell the truth.
Truth telling is the ethical concern for the nurse, because truth is the
basis for mutual trust between patient and nurse, the trust is the basis for
patient’s hope of benefit from nursing services.
However truth telling may be difficult in a health care relationship.
Some information that is transmitted from nurse to patient is
depressing and /or frightening, eg: bad news about personal health
status.

RESPECT FOR JUSTICE: Justice concerns the issue that persons

should be treated equally and fairly. This principle of justice requires
treating others fairly and giving persons their due.
Questions of justice relate to the fairness with which benefits and
burdens are distributed among people.

RESPECT FOR RIGHTS: Right is an entitlement to behave in

certain way under circumstances such as nurses’ entitlement to freely
express personal beliefs and preferences by voting in political education.
A right is also calm to a specific good, service or prerequisite such as
tea break time.
Right is also used to mean agreement with justice, law and morality.
So right may be mental right or legal right related to respective
profession.
 The patient as the right to every consideration of his privacy.
 The patient has the right to expect that all communication.

5
  The patient has the right to obtain information as to any
relationship of his hospital to other health care and educational
institutions.
 The patient has the right to be advised if the hospital proposes to
engage in or perform experimentation effecting his care or
treatment.
 The patient has the right to expect reasonable continuity of care.
 The patient has the right to examine and receive an explanation of
his bill regardless of source of payment.

RESPECT FOR FIDELITY: Fidelity is keeping one’s promises or

commitments. The principle of fidelity holds that a person should
faithfully fulfill his duties and obligations. Fidelity is important in a
nurse because a patients hope for relief and recovery rest on evidence of
caregivers.

CONFIDENCIALITY: It is the duty to respect privileged

information. The principle of confidentiality provides that caregivers
should respect a patient need for privacy and use personal information
about him/her only to improve care.
Nurses should practice confidentiality to decrease patient vulnerability
and share from widespread knowledge of personal information during
care.
INTERNATIONAL CODE OF ETHICS
International Council of Nurses (ICN) first adopted its code of ethics
for nurses in 1953 as “ a guide for action based on social values and
needs” (ICN) 2000.
In India, nurses are following the International Council of Nurses
Code for 1993 as given below.
 The fundamental responsibility of the nurse is four-fold, i.e. to
promote health, to prevent illness, to restore health, to elevate
suffering.
 The need for nursing is universal, inherent in nursing is respect for
life, dignity and rights of man.

6
  Nurses render health services to the individual, the family and the
community and coordinate their services with those of related
group.
NURSE AND PEOPLE:
 The nurses carries personal responsibility for nursing practice and
for maintaining competence by continual learning.
 The nurse uses judgment in relation to individual competence
when accepting and delegating responsibilities.
 The nurse when acting in a professional capacity should at all
times maintain standards of personal conduct which reflect credit
upon the profession.

NURSE AND SOCIETY:

 The nurse shares with other citizens the responsibilities for
initiating and supporting action to meet the health and social
needs of the public.

NURSE AND COWORKER:

 The nurse sustains a cooperative relationship with coworkers in
nursing and other fields.
 The nurse takes appropriate action to safeguard the individual
when his care endangered by a coworker or any other person.

NURSE ANDPROFESSION:
 The nurse plays the major role in determining and implementing
desirable standards of nursing practice and nursing education.
 The nurse is active in developing a care of professional knowledge.
 The nurse acting through the professional organization participates
in establishing and maintaining equitable social and economic
working conditions in nursing.

7
CODE OF ETHICS FOR NURSES IN INDIA
Indian Nursing Council (INC) has publishes the code of ethics for
nurses in India in year 2006. The code of ethics for nurses is critical for
building professionalism and accountability. Ethical consideration are
vital in any area dealing with human beings including nursing research
because they represent values, rights and relationships.
The code of ethics for Nurses in India is as following;
1. The nurse respects the uniqueness of an individual in provision of
care

 Nurse- provides care for individuals without consideration of caste,

belief, religion, culture, ethnicity, gender, socio economics and
political status, personal attributes or any other grounds.
 Individualized the care considering the belief values and cultural
sensitivities.
 Develops and promotes trustful relationship with individuals.

2. The nurse respects the rights of individuals as partners in care and

helps in making informed choices
.
 Appropriate individuals rights to make decisions about their care
and therefore gives adequate and accurate information.
 Respect the decisions made by individual regarding their care.
 Protect public from misinformation and misinterpretation

3. The nurse respects individuals rights to privacy, maintains

confidentiality and shares information judicious.

 Respect the individuals’ rights to privacy of their personal

information.
 Informed consent is required for quality / legal reasons.

4. The nurse maintains competence in order to render quality nursing

care.

8
  Nurse- Nursing care must be provided only by a registered nurse.
 Nurse value continuing education utilizes all opportunities for self
development.

5. The nurse is obliged to practice within the framework of ethical,

professional and legal boundaries nurse.

 Code of ethics and code of professional conduct for nurses in

India developed by INC.
 Relevant laws and practices in accordance with the law of the
state.

6. The nurse is oblique to work harmoniously with members of the

health team.

 Appreciates the team’s efforts in rending care

 Cooperates coordinates and collaborates with members of the
health team to meet the needs of people.

7. The nurse commits to reciprocate the trust invested in nursing

profession by the society.

 Nurse- Demonstrates personal etiquettes in all dealings

 Demonstrates professional attributes in all dealings.

9
SUMMARY
Code of ethics is a formal statement of a groups ideas and values
and is includes definitions, purposes, uses, types, principles are respect
for persons, autonomy, freedom, beneficence, nonmaleficence, veracity,
justice, rights, confidentiality and ICN elements are Nurse and People,
Nurse and Practice, Nurse and Society, Nurse and Coworkers, Nurse and
Profession and INC ethics for nurs

CONCLUSION
Within any given profession, a code of ethics serves as a means
of self regulation and a source of guidelines for individual behavior and
responsibility. Professional code of ethics are system of rules and
principles by which that profession is expected to regulate its members
and demonstrate its responsibility to society.
International Council of Nurses (ICN) first adopted its code of
ethics for nurses in 1953 as “ a guide for action based on social values
and needs” (ICN) 2000.
Indian Nursing Council (INC) has publishes the code of ethics
for nurses in India in year 2006. The code of ethics for nurses is critical
for building professionalism and accountability. Ethical consideration
are vital in any area dealing with human beings including nursing
research because they represent values, rights and relationships.

10
BIBLIOGRAPHY
1. Basavanthappa.BT. Fundamentals of Nursing.2nd Ed. Jaypee
Brothers Medical Publications. New Delhi.Pg-78,79.
2. Barbara Kozier. Fundamentals of Nursing.7th Ed. Published by
Pearson Education.2004.Pg-24-26.
3. Potter and Perry. Fundamentals of Nursing.6 th Ed. Elsevier
Publications. Pg-391
4. Hark reader Helen. Fundamentals of Nursing.3 rd Ed. Elsevier
Publications. Pg-19,20
5. Potter and Perry. Basic Nursing. 7th Ed. Elsevier Publications. Pg-64
6. Vinita Vani.k. Management of Nursing Services and Education.
Florence Publications. Pg-7.22-27
7. Suresh k Sharma. Nursing Research and Statistics. Elsevier
Publications. Pg-42-44

Net References:
En.wikipedia.org

www.socialworkers.org

http://na.theiia.org

www.coachfederation.org

11
12