Reference no: EM133850534

Question

Mr. Davis is a 76 year old retired professor, who lives by himself in a small apartment. He is admitted to the medical-surgical unit of the community hospital with a diagnosis of weakness, dehydration, electrolyte imbalance, and malnutrition. He has no close family, but a neighbor who accompanied Mr. Davis to the hospital informed the nurse that she felt he had a preoccupation with his bowel movements and took large quantities of over-the counter laxatives. During the admission interview, Mr. Davis was mildly disoriented to place and time but denied taking any over-the-counter medications. He was started on IV fluid and electrolyte replacement and placed on a high calorie diet and bedrest. He was very compliant with the treatments, except that he frequently visited the bathroom for bowel movements. On entering the room, one of the nurses noted that Mr. Davis was hurriedly returning a bottle of what appeared to be laxative pills to his shaving kit. The nurse asked him about it but was told "It's none of your business- just stay out of my stuff!" by a very irate M. Davis. The nurse later informed the physician of the episode. The physician ordered the nurse to obtain the shaving kit and see if there are any laxatives in it. He reasoned that if the patient was taking large doses of laxatives and having diarrhea, all treatments would be without benefit. Initially the nurse agreed with the physician, but after thinking about the situation and remembering some basic legal principles, she questioned the legality of searching a patient's belongings without permission. You are the nurse. What would your first thoughts be? What ethical principles would you consider? How would you solve this dilemma?