Portal de Periódicos da CAPES

A Call for Papers

2007; Elsevier BV; Volume: 33; Issue: 2 Linguagem: Inglês

10.1016/j.jen.2007.01.004

1527-2966

Dave Reynolds,

Ethics in medical practice

Often, it seems, little events have big consequences, or at least, they have bigger consequences then we envisioned. Case in point: Some colleagues and I were talking about the effects of computerized charting on nursing ethics. The discussion led to a Letter to the Editor of the Journal of Emergency Nursing. It was never the intent of the letter to be published; rather, we wanted to suggest that someone might want to take up the topic in more depth. The Editor's response was to submit the letter for publication. In response, I suggested that perhaps the Journal would benefit by having a regular column on nursing ethics in the emergency department. The Editor's response to me was, “Would you be the section editor for that?” That, again, was never in my mind.However, after struggling with the idea for a while, bouncing a few letters back and forth between the Editor and myself, and consulting with some of my friends and my wife, I hesitantly agreed to give it a try. When I look back on all the nurses that I have known who have gotten in trouble in nursing, it was because of ethics. For some emergency nurses a limited understanding of ethical concepts or their implications may lead to poor insight into the ethical consequences of their actions. I really believe that all of us can benefit by raising our ethical sensitivity, and that ethics is very important in everything we do in nursing.Now, it is not my intention to write a lot of papers on ethics, or to try and sell all of you on my personal ethical views. Rather, I would like to see this column become a place where we can carry on discussions, even disagreements, share insights, and ask questions about day-to-day ethical challenges we face as ED nurses. It is also not my intention for this column to become a series of theoretical ethical papers that put forward this or that theory on how to make good ethical choices. A brief review of papers on nursing ethics showed an overwhelming volume of such papers. Frankly, I wondered what most of what was written had to do with where I live, or to use an old expression, “With where the rubber meets the road.” I believe that the Journal would like practical papers that ED nurses can use to help them problem solve the situations that are encountered on a daily basis.This is where all of you come in. I need you to submit articles based on your own ED experiences. They can be articles that provide case presentations of ethical challenges you have faced. They can be articles in which you ask for suggestions regarding how to approach a situation ethically. They can be articles regarding concerns you have about specific challenges to ED nursing ethics. There are a wide range of options. I see an opportunity here to have a very down to earth and practical column that really helps each of us think, yet is focused on what is the right thing (that's what ethics is all about) to do in a given situation. You can be brand new to nursing practice, and be facing new challenges, including the challenge of how to respond to the “experienced nurse” in your midst who thinks that the old way is the only way. You can be an “experienced nurse” who is concerned with the training and upbringing of our new young nurses, or who can share your years of experience in facing ethical challenges in difficult situations. You can be a thinker who sees a potential problem, and you may just want to raise ED nurses' consciousness so that it doesn't become a real problem. Or you can be a group of ED nurses who share a common vision you would like to share with all of us.This is an open opportunity for all of us, but I cannot do it by myself. So as you are working, as you are dialoguing with colleagues (much as I did when I sent our letter to the Editor), as you are struggling with a problem, think about writing it up as an article, as a case presentation, or as a request for assistance. We can all use your insights to help us see some things more clearly.I have an unfortunate work schedule in which half my life is nights and half is days. During the night half, I primarily use my E-mail address at my primary job: [email protected] . During the day half I use my home E-mail address: [email protected] . Please, when sending articles to me, send them to both addresses. That way I will get material in a very timely manner. I am able to open and read Microsoft Word documents, Corel WordPerfect documents, and Adobe PDF documents, so work with whichever format you are comfortable with.Our initial plan is to publish articles twice a year. When you send something to me, I will get back to you as promptly as I am able to let you know if I can use what you send. If you are unsure, send me a proposal, and we can talk back and forth via E-mail about your ideas.I thank you all in advance for your help in making this column successful. Often, it seems, little events have big consequences, or at least, they have bigger consequences then we envisioned. Case in point: Some colleagues and I were talking about the effects of computerized charting on nursing ethics. The discussion led to a Letter to the Editor of the Journal of Emergency Nursing. It was never the intent of the letter to be published; rather, we wanted to suggest that someone might want to take up the topic in more depth. The Editor's response was to submit the letter for publication. In response, I suggested that perhaps the Journal would benefit by having a regular column on nursing ethics in the emergency department. The Editor's response to me was, “Would you be the section editor for that?” That, again, was never in my mind. However, after struggling with the idea for a while, bouncing a few letters back and forth between the Editor and myself, and consulting with some of my friends and my wife, I hesitantly agreed to give it a try. When I look back on all the nurses that I have known who have gotten in trouble in nursing, it was because of ethics. For some emergency nurses a limited understanding of ethical concepts or their implications may lead to poor insight into the ethical consequences of their actions. I really believe that all of us can benefit by raising our ethical sensitivity, and that ethics is very important in everything we do in nursing. Now, it is not my intention to write a lot of papers on ethics, or to try and sell all of you on my personal ethical views. Rather, I would like to see this column become a place where we can carry on discussions, even disagreements, share insights, and ask questions about day-to-day ethical challenges we face as ED nurses. It is also not my intention for this column to become a series of theoretical ethical papers that put forward this or that theory on how to make good ethical choices. A brief review of papers on nursing ethics showed an overwhelming volume of such papers. Frankly, I wondered what most of what was written had to do with where I live, or to use an old expression, “With where the rubber meets the road.” I believe that the Journal would like practical papers that ED nurses can use to help them problem solve the situations that are encountered on a daily basis. This is where all of you come in. I need you to submit articles based on your own ED experiences. They can be articles that provide case presentations of ethical challenges you have faced. They can be articles in which you ask for suggestions regarding how to approach a situation ethically. They can be articles regarding concerns you have about specific challenges to ED nursing ethics. There are a wide range of options. I see an opportunity here to have a very down to earth and practical column that really helps each of us think, yet is focused on what is the right thing (that's what ethics is all about) to do in a given situation. You can be brand new to nursing practice, and be facing new challenges, including the challenge of how to respond to the “experienced nurse” in your midst who thinks that the old way is the only way. You can be an “experienced nurse” who is concerned with the training and upbringing of our new young nurses, or who can share your years of experience in facing ethical challenges in difficult situations. You can be a thinker who sees a potential problem, and you may just want to raise ED nurses' consciousness so that it doesn't become a real problem. Or you can be a group of ED nurses who share a common vision you would like to share with all of us. This is an open opportunity for all of us, but I cannot do it by myself. So as you are working, as you are dialoguing with colleagues (much as I did when I sent our letter to the Editor), as you are struggling with a problem, think about writing it up as an article, as a case presentation, or as a request for assistance. We can all use your insights to help us see some things more clearly. I have an unfortunate work schedule in which half my life is nights and half is days. During the night half, I primarily use my E-mail address at my primary job: [email protected] . During the day half I use my home E-mail address: [email protected] . Please, when sending articles to me, send them to both addresses. That way I will get material in a very timely manner. I am able to open and read Microsoft Word documents, Corel WordPerfect documents, and Adobe PDF documents, so work with whichever format you are comfortable with. Our initial plan is to publish articles twice a year. When you send something to me, I will get back to you as promptly as I am able to let you know if I can use what you send. If you are unsure, send me a proposal, and we can talk back and forth via E-mail about your ideas. I thank you all in advance for your help in making this column successful.