Speaker 1: Hey there, it's Christine from Nurse in the Making, and today we're gonna talk about ethical principles. This is a very common topic tested on the NCLEX and in your fundamentals class. So let's look at the seven ethical principles you need to know. The first one is autonomy, and this is respecting a patient's values and beliefs. A patient has the right to choice and self-determination. It's the idea that a patient holds the right to make their own healthcare decisions and has the right to make all choices in their care. You can remember this by the memory trick, autonomy think all by myself. I have the right to make my own decisions. An example of autonomy would be a patient refusing treatment because every patient has the legal right to refuse a surgical procedure or treatment if they are deemed medically stable. In other words, they have autonomy over themselves and their healthcare choices. The next one is beneficence. This is always doing good for the patient and acting with compassion. The nurse should always choose the good for each patient. You can remember this because beneficence looks like benefit, and benefit means good. An example of this would be holding a patient's hand who is on hospice care and wants someone close to them. We're doing good for our patient and acting with compassion. The next one is fidelity. This is where the nurse will remain loyal and faithful in their actions and care. They are keeping their promises and providing safe, well-intentioned care. You can remember this by the memory trick, fidelity think faithful. An example of fidelity in healthcare would be telling your elderly patient you will bring them to the bathroom in 15 minutes, and you act faithfully to your statement. You're not just saying things to leave the room. Again, fidelity is being loyal and faithful in your actions. Accountability. The nurse will take responsibility for all their actions. They are accountable for their errors or mistakes. You can remember this by the memory trick, accountability think I'm accountable for my actions. An example of this would be when a nurse makes a medication error, they're gonna take responsibility for it and not try to hide it. Again, we're accountable for our actions. The next one is justice. Just means fair, and justice means equal care will be delivered to all patients. You can remember this by the memory trick, I just want fair care for all. An example of justice is caring for each patient the same, regardless of their background, socioeconomic status, gender, ethnicity, or history. Again, equal care will be delivered to all. The next ethical principle is non-maleficence. Another way to say this is do no harm. The nurse should not inflict any harm on any patient. This could include intentional or unintentional harm. You can remember this by the memory trick, non means none and mal means bad. So in other words, do no bad or do no harm. An example of non-maleficence is when a nurse stops administering a medication that is known to be harmful. Another example is not administering aspirin to a patient with a known allergy to aspirin. This is why you as a nurse should do multiple checks before administering to avoid a medication error that could harm your patient. Again, this is intentional or unintentional harm. The next ethical principle is veracity. This is being entirely honest with the patient at all times. You can remember this by the memory trick, veracity, think very honest. An example of this is simply not lying to your patients. If a patient is taking a medication with a known adverse side effect and the patient asks, does this medication have side effects? You as a nurse need to be very honest and tell them the known side effects. Okay, let's do a practice question to test your knowledge. Which of the following is the correct understanding of nursing ethical principles? Pause the video and comment your answer below. Justice is telling the client the truth that the medication can cause a rash. Autonomy is requiring the patient to have an advanced directive. Fidelity is staying with a patient during their death as promised. Beneficence is not telling the client they have cancer because that was the family's wishes. Justice is telling the client the truth that the medication can cause a rash. Telling the client the truth is veracity, not justice. Remember, veracity, think very honest. So this one is not correct. Autonomy is requiring the client to have an advanced directive. Requiring is not autonomy. This is a tricky one because, well, the NCLEX is tricky. Having an advanced directive is a patient's right, but requiring a patient to have one is taking their autonomy away from them. So this is not correct. Fidelity is staying with a patient during their death as promised. Yeah, this sounds like fidelity. Remember, fidelity, think faithful. This is the correct one, but let's look at option four to make sure. Beneficence is not telling the client they have cancer because that was the family's wishes. This is taking away the patient's autonomy. Beneficence means doing good, but this statement takes away the patient's autonomy because they have the right to know their medical diagnoses. For more daily NCLEX practice questions like this, you can subscribe to my YouTube channel. Let's do a quick review of the seven ethical principles. Autonomy means the right to make your own decisions. Remember, autonomy, think all by myself. Beneficence means doing right or doing good. Remember, that sounds like benefit, which is a good thing. Fidelity means remaining loyal and faithful. Fidelity, think faithful. Next is accountability, which means responsible for all my actions. Think accountability, I am accountable for my actions. Justice means equal care. Remember, I just want fair care for all. Non-maleficence means do no harm. Non means none and mal means bad. Last but not least, we have veracity, which means remaining honest at all times. Veracity, think very honest. That's all for the seven ethical principles that you need to know for the NCLEX. Don't forget to subscribe to my YouTube channel and ring the bell to be notified for more nursing school content. Happy studying, future nurses.