Online Journal of Health Ethics
Volume 2 | Issue 2 Article 2
Nursing Ethics: Across the Curriculum and Into
Practice Book Review
Janie B. Butts D.S.N., RN
The University of Southern Mississippi, janie.butts@usm.edu
Karen L. Rich Ph.D. (c), RN
The University of Southern Mississippi, karen.rich@usm.edu
Follow this and additional works at: http://aquila.usm.edu/ojhe
Recommended Citation
Butts, J. B., & Rich, K. L. (2005). Nursing Ethics: Across the Curriculum and Into Practice Book
Review. Online Journal of Health Ethics, 2(2). http://dx.doi.org/10.18785/ojhe.0202.02
This Article is brought to you for free and open access by The Aquila Digital Community. It has been accepted for inclusion in Online Journal of Health
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Nursing Ethics
Nursing Ethics: Across the Curriculum and Into Practice
Book Review
Janie B. Butts, D.S.N., RN
The University of Southern Mississippi
School of Nursing
Associate Professor
Karen L. Rich, Ph.D. (c), RN
The University of Southern Mississippi
School of Nursing
Instructor
Abstract
Spanning the nursing curriculum, Nursing Ethics: Across the Curriculum and
Into Practice is derived from theoretical foundations, clinical evidence and case
study. Based on the concept that compassionate relationships between nurses
and patients form a vital element of humanistic nursing, this text provides
foundational knowledge about ethics and decision-making strategies to prepare
nurses for the moral issues they experience daily. Nursing Ethics includes
decision-making approaches and models, rationale for decisions, and
management of care for various topics.
ISBN: 0763747351
Price: $45.95 (Suggested US List)
Cover: Paperback
Pages: 277
Copyright: 2005, Jones and Bartlett Publishers, Inc.
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Nursing Ethics
Nursing Ethics: Across the Curriculum and Into Practice
Book Review
This first edition of Nursing Ethics Across the Curriculum and into Practice reflects two
moral elements that the authors believe are pervasive in all of nursing practice: a
kaleidoscope or variety of patterns in terms of relationships and compassion symbolized
by nurturing hands. These moral elements are closely linked and form a dynamic
mosaic of nurses' everyday practice. The information covered in the book includes an
exploration of many bioethical issues but also connects those issues to nursing ethics or
the type of ethics that students and practicing nurses will encounter in their day-to-day
clinical experiences.
This book helps nursing faculty teach ethics in a logical, coordinated way across the
curriculum. The book prevents needless repetition from course to course, which makes
learning more interesting for students.
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Nursing Ethics
Key Features of this Book
Supports the recommendations by NLNAC and AACN (CCNE) to integrate
across the curriculum more content in bioethics and nursing ethics, including
nursing relationships.
Supports ANAs and ICNs emphasis on compassion in nursing in their Code of
Ethics (2001; 2000, respectively) by threading a theme of compassion throughout
the book.
Is set apart from other nursing ethics books with its "across the curriculum"
approach written at the undergraduate level.
Includes more of an emphasis on day-to-day relationships in nursing than other
texts.
Highlights the difference between nursing ethics and bioethics.
Includes an exploration of many bioethical issues but also connects those issues
to the type of ethics that nursing students and practicing nurses will encounter in
their day-to-day clinical experiences, whereas many traditional nursing ethics
books focus largely on ethical theory and professional development.
Contains a thread of Eastern philosophy, which is different from traditional
nursing ethics books.
Includes an online Instructor's Manual.
This book is targeted for use with each clinical specialty course within traditional
baccalaureate and RN-BSN programs. The book is also useful for professional
development, nursing issues, or specific ethics courses. For an across the curriculum
perspective, the book is intended for adoption at the beginning of a nursing program.
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Nursing Ethics
Nursing students can use the nursing ethics book throughout their program of study in
each nursing course as appropriate until graduation.
The chapters in this book coincide with nursing courses and core content. The following
Table of Contents includes an overview of chapters:
Chapter 1: Introduction to Nursing Ethics
Jonsen, Siegler, and Winslades (2002) Four Topics approach to ethical case analysis.
Practical strategies for developing web ethics and an overview of healthcare on the
web.
Chapter 2: Values, Relationships, and Virtues
Rich and Butts virtue-based Moral Ground Model and their view of Moral Suffering
Relationships in nursing
Chapter 3: Adult Health Nursing Ethics
A reflection on truth telling by an exemplary nurse from the play Wit
Organ transplantation and the newest recommendations
Chapter 4: Reproductive Issues and Nursing Ethics
Central ethical dilemmas of abortion and reproductive technology
Management of care for women of child-bearing age based on Bergums (2004)
relational ethics of environment, embodiment, mutual respect, and engagement
Chapter 5: Nursing Ethics in the Care of Infants and Children
Concepts of mothers and mothering persons involving ethical care of infants and
children
Withholding and withdrawing treatment of children under 12 years old
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Nursing Ethics
Chapter 6: Adolescent Nursing Ethics
Ethical dilemmas involving prevention education: abstinence-only and comprehensive
sex education programs
Management of care for adolescents based on the virtues of trustworthiness,
genuineness, compassion, and honesty
Chapter 7: Psychiatric-Mental Health Nursing Ethics
Ethical implications and stigma associated with mental illness diagnoses
Management of care based on humanistic nursing practice theory and a person-
centered approach
Chapter 8: Geriatric and Chronic Illness Nursing Ethics
Moral agency related to elders decisional capacity, autonomy and paternalism,
vulnerability, dependence, and dementia virtues that are needed by elders
Chapter 9: Community-Public Health and Leadership Ethics
A view of community building, communitarian ethics, and moral imagination
Service learning, servant leadership, health disparities, and infectious diseases
Chapter 10: End-of-Life Ethical Issues and Nursing
An explanation of the ideal death, the history of death, and euthanasia
An overview of types of advance directives, surrogates, and end-of-life issues
