Patient Autonomy and Medical Paternity: can nurses help doctors to listen to patients?

• Published in: Nursing ethics Vol. 8; no. 6; pp. 510 - 521
• Main Author: Breier-Mackie, Sarah
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Thousand Oaks, CA SAGE Publications 01.11.2001
• Subjects: Advocacy; Autonomy; Bioethics; Cancer; Dying people; End of life decisions; Female; Humans; Male; Medical Futility - ethics; Nurse's Role; Nurses; Nursing; Paternalism; Patient Advocacy; Personal Autonomy; Physician-Patient Relations; Rights; Terminal Care; paternity; autonomy; medical futility; end-of-life care; Professional Patient Relationship; Death and Euthanasia

Nurses are increasingly faced with situations in practice regarding the prolongation of life and withdrawal of treatment. They play a central role in the care of dying people, yet they may find themselves disempowered by medical paternalism or ill-equipped in the decision-making process in end-of-li...