ICN Code for Nurses

1. ICN Code of Nursing Ethics
Code of Ethics For Nurses
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Prof. Dr. RS Mehta

2. 2
Ethics of Nursing
• Ethics includes values, codes, and principles that govern
decisions in nursing practice and relationships
• Nursing Ethics is the discipline of evaluating the merits, risks,
and social concerns of activities in the field of nursing
• Ethical principles are necessary to guide to professional
development
Prof. Dr. RS Mehta

3. 3
A CODE FOR NURSING STUDENTS
• Advocate the rights of all clients
• Maintain client confidentiality
• Take appropriate action to ensure the safety of clients, self,
and others
• Provide care for the client in a timely, compassionate and
professional manner
• Communicate client care in a truthful
• Promote excellence in nursing by encouraging lifelong
learning and professional development
• and other codes…
Prof. Dr. RS Mehta

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Principles of Health Care Ethics
•Beneficence: means doing or promoting good in
such a manner as to safeguard and promote the
interest and well being of patients and clients
•Nonmaleficence: means to avoid doing harm, to
remove from harm, and to prevent harm. Harm can
be physical and so include pain, disability, discomfort
and death but it can also be psychological and thus
include mental stress
Prof. Dr. RS Mehta

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Principles of Health Care Ethics...
•Autonomy: Principles of self determination
•The cardinal principles of autonomy:
The right to full disclosure- the right to know
The right to privacy
The right to receive care and treatment
Prof. Dr. RS Mehta

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Principles of Health Care Ethics...
•Justice: The principle of fairness is the basis for the
obligation to treat all clients equally and fairly
•Veracity: telling the truth. Clients prefer to receive
accurate information about their conditions and
prognosis even when the outlook is bleak
Prof. Dr. RS Mehta

7. 7
Principles of Health Care Ethics...
•Privacy:
To ensure that the patient’s body is appropriate
covered
 To establish a culture of privacy to ensure that
personal information of patients is kept as private as
possible
Prof. Dr. RS Mehta

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• Confidentiality:
• To preserving the human dignity of patients
• Discussing clients outside the clinical setting, telling
friends or family about clients, or even discussing
clients in the elevator with other workers violates client
confidentiality and must be a voided
Principles of Health Care Ethics...
Prof. Dr. RS Mehta

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•Accountability
• Is about justifying actions, explaining why something
was (or was not) done
• The purpose of calling people to account for their
actions is therefore to establish whether they had good
enough reasons for acting in the way they did
Principles of Health Care Ethics...
Prof. Dr. RS Mehta

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•FIDELITY
•The professional´s faithfulness or loyalty to
agreements & responsibilities accepted as
part of the practice of the profession
Principles of Health Care Ethics...
Prof. Dr. RS Mehta

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• The nurses are always responsible for their behaviours
• Has to refuse to perform procedures for which they
haven´t been prepared
• Ignorance isn’t a legal defence. Neither will lack of
sleep or overwork be accepted as a legal reason for
carelessness about safety measures or mistakes
Be competent in your practice
Prof. Dr. RS Mehta

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The ICN Code of Ethics
Nursing care is respectful of and unrestricted by
considerations of age, color, creed, culture, disability or
illness, gender, sexual orientation, nationality, politics,
race or social status
Prof. Dr. RS Mehta

13. International Council of Nurses (ICN)
Code of Ethics
• An international code of ethics for nurses was first adopted by
the International Council of Nurses (ICN) in 1953.
• It has been revised and reaffirmed at various times since,
most recently with this review and revision completed in
2021.
Prof. Dr. RS Mehta 13

14. PURPOSE OF THE CODE
• The ICN Code of Ethics for Nurses is a statement of the ethical
values, responsibilities and professional accountabilities of
nurses and nursing students, that defines and guides ethical
nursing practice within the different roles nurses assume.
• It is not a code of conduct but can serve as a framework for
ethical nursing practice and decision-making to meet
professional standards set by regulatory bodies.
Prof. Dr. RS Mehta 14

15. •The ICN Code of Ethics for Nurses provides
ethical guidance in relation to nurses’ roles,
duties, responsibilities, behaviors, professional
judgment and relationships with patients, other
people who are receiving nursing care or
services, co-workers and allied professionals.
Prof. Dr. RS Mehta 15

16. ICN Code for Nurses-2012
- Nursing and People
- Nursing and society
- Nurses and profession
- Nurses and practice
- Nurses and co-workers
Prof. Dr. RS Mehta 16

17. Code of Ethics 2021
1. NURSES AND PATIENTS OR OTHER PEOPLE REQUIRING CARE OR
SERVICES
2. NURSES AND PRACTICE
3. NURSES AND THE PROFESSION
4. NURSES AND GLOBAL HEALTH
Prof. Dr. RS Mehta 17

18. 1. NURSES AND PATIENTS OR OTHER PEOPLE
REQUIRING CARE OR SERVICES
There are 11 points: 1-11
11. Nurses ensure that the use of technology and
scientific advances are compatible with the safety,
dignity and rights of people. In the case of artificial
intelligence or devices, such as care robots or drones,
nurses ensure that care remains person-centred and
that such devices support and do not replace human
relationships.
Prof. Dr. RS Mehta 18

19. 2. NURSES AND PRACTICE
There are 12 points:
1. Nurses carry personal responsibility and accountability for
ethical nursing practice, and for maintaining competence
by engaging in continuous professional development and
lifelong learning.
2. Nurses are accountable for data integrity to support and
facilitate ethical standards of care.
Prof. Dr. RS Mehta 19

20. 3. NURSES AND THE PROFESSION
There are 7 points:
1. Nurses assume the major leadership role in determining
and implementing evidence-informed, acceptable
standards of clinical nursing practice, management,
research and education.
2. Nurses and nursing scholars are active in expanding
research-based, current professional knowledge that
supports evidence-informed practice.
Prof. Dr. RS Mehta 20

21. 4. NURSES AND GLOBAL HEALTH
There are 8 points:
1. Nurses value health care as a human right, affirming the right
to universal access to health care for all
2. Nurses uphold the dignity, freedom and worth of all human
beings and oppose all forms of exploitation, such as human
trafficking and child labour.
3. Nurses lead or contribute to sound health policy development
Prof. Dr. RS Mehta 21

22. Thank-you
Prof. Dr. RS Mehta 22