Ethics Committees: Team Perspectives and Organizational Responses.

ABSTRACT

Healthcare ethics committees can be valuable resources but are largely underutilized by nurses. The purpose of this project was to review ethics concerns and educational needs of nurses in a large, integrated healthcare delivery system. Seven themes were identified organizational issues, nonbeneficial care, withdrawing life-sustaining therapies, discharge disposition, challenging patients and families, communication with physicians, and capacity versus competence. A process was then developed to better engage nurses in ethical discussions.