Course Code & Description: UMND2393 Legal, Ethical and Professional Issues
Coursework Value: 30% (Assignment 1)
Intake: October 2023
Trimester: February 2025
A. Learning Outcomes
On completion of this course assignment, the student will be able to:
1. Analyse relevant ethical principles involved when resolving ethical dilemma. (Analysis)
2. Discuss the interventions in ethical decision-making process. (Application)
3. Discuss the systematic approach to decision-making in resolving this ethical dilemma. (Application)
B. Assignment Question
This is an individual assignment. In this assignment, you are required to explore the given hypothetical ethical dilemma in nursing and answer the questions that follow.
Assignment: Ethical Dilemma in Nursing Practice - Scenario-Based Assignment Scenario:
You are a registered nurse working in a busy hospital ward. One of your patients, Mr. John Smith, a 72-year-old man with a history of chronic heart disease, is admitted after suffering a myocardial infarction (heart attack). His prognosis is poor, and he is in critical condition. His family has been informed about his condition and the possible need for surgery. However, Mr. Smith has refused the surgery, citing his desire not to undergo any more invasive procedures after a previous surgery a few years ago, which led to complications.
His wife, Mrs. Smith, is very insistent that he should undergo surgery, believing it will save his life. She argues that his refusal is based on fear and emotional distress rather than rational thought. The medical team has discussed Mr. Smith's refusal and the implications of his decision. The doctor and the nurses are caught in a dilemma: should they respect Mr. Smith's autonomy and refusal of treatment, or should they consider the intervention as a life-saving option in the best interest of the patient, given his critical state?
Questions:
1. Analyze the ethical principles involved in the scenario.
2. Discuss potential interventions that you, as nurse involved, will take to resolve this dilemma.
3. Discuss the systematic ethical decision-making approach that will be taken to resolve this dilemma in nursing practice.
C. Assessment Criteria
1. Word count: 1800-2200
2. Format:
• Cover page: Follow the standard format
• Table of contents: list the topics with the page numbers
• Use Times New Roman font size 12
• Single double spacing between sentences. Two double spacing between paragraphs
• Pagination - middle bottom page as plain number
• Margins:
- Top: 2.0 cm
- Bottom: 2.0 cm
- Right: 2.0 cm
- Left: 4.0 cm
• Attach the marking scheme as the last page.
3. Harvard Referencing:
• In-text referencing correctly cited
• Reference list prepared in accordance with guideline
• Recent 5 years, quality sources used
• At least five scholarly references should be used to support your analysis.
4. Penalty for late submission:
• Per day penalty: 5%
• Maximum penalty: 20%