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Introduction to Nursing, Health, and the Australian Health Care System

Assessment - Case Study

You have recently commenced placement in a metropolitan residential nursing home.

The metropolitan nursing home is allocated one Registered Nurse and six Aged Care Workers for each early shift.

A Registered Nurse is in charge each shift and provides oversight of care provided to 68 residents who reside in the metropolitan nursing home, 35 of whom have high care needs, due to a diminished ability to care for themselves, due to physical and neurological impairments such as motor neurone disease and dementia.

Most of the Registered Nurse's shift involves completing medication rounds and documenting records so your contact with the Registered Nurse after your initial orientation is limited.

The Aged Care Workers provide most of the daily care to the residents in the metropolitan nursing home in which you are undertaking your placement, such as assisting with personal care (assisting with bathing, showering, grooming, oral care and toileting), physical mobility (helping with walking, using a hoist and transferring resident) or meal assistance (helping with meal rounds and feeding residents).
During your first week at the nursing home, you are assigned to be with an Aged Care Worker, called Oliver.
On your fourth shift, which is an early shift, you are assisting Oliver to prepare Jack, an 87-year-old man, for a bath prior to breakfast. Jack has scabies and Oliver has prepared a bath for Jack . You assist Jack to enter the bath and then proceed to get some towels for Jack, from the linen trolley.
As you re-enter the bathroom you notice an unusual smell that was not in the bathroom when you went to get the towels for Jack. You ask Oliver what the smell is, and Oliver responds that it is kerosene to assist with the treatment of scabies and he has poured some into the bath water after you had left the bathroom.
Oliver explains the use of kerosene is an old-fashioned remedy being used on Jack as the Registered Nurse advised that the residential nursing home has run out of Permethrin Lotion 5%. Oliver explains using the kerosene is the same as using Pinetarsol, an over-the-counter liquid often diluted in baths to treat scabies, which was recommended for use by the Registered Nurse on duty.
Jack states ‘you didn't ask me if I was happy to be bathed in kerosene' to which Oliver responds - ‘Jack - this is for your scabies and to prevent spread to the other residents, any way it's an old-fashioned remedy, don't worry'.
You question Oliver regards Jack not being asked if he wished to be bathed using Kerosene to treat his scabies and Oliver responds that ‘he is an old man, I can do what I want, no one will believe him'.

General Instructions:
Using Steps 1 - 3 of the decision-making framework (McDonald & Then 2019), explore and analyse the ethical and legal implications of the case study above.
Utilise the template provided to address each step (1-3).

Step 1: Identify Issues and collect information (approx. 400 words) (McDonald & Then 2019. p 23-35).
1.a: Identify issues in the case study, one of which must be an ethical issue (for example: ethical violation, ethical dilemma, or ethical distress)
1.b: Explain why the identified ethical issue from 1a is an ethical violation, an ethical dilemma and / or ethical distress
1.c: State who is involved or who ought to be involved in this situation.
1.d: Identify any relevant facts that have contributed to this situation and any other facts that you would need to collect to be best informed about the situation.

Step 2: Evaluate the issues (approx. 500 words) (McDonald & Then, 2019. p 13 - 23)
This requires you to Identify relevant ethical principles (not ethical issues) (McDonald & Then, 2019. p 13 - 23), and professional guidelines and explain how you would apply them to the ethical issues you have identified in Step 1.
Please address the following:
2.a: Identify relevant ethical principles: autonomy, beneficence, non-maleficence and justice to the identified ethical issue/s from 1.a
2.b: Identify and apply relevant sections of The ICN Code of ethics for nurses (International Council of Nurses, 2021) to the identified ethical issue/s from 1.a
2.c: Identify and apply relevant sections of the Registered nurse standards for practice (Nursing and Midwifery Board of Australia, 2016) OR the Code of conduct for nurses (Nursing and Midwifery Board of Australia, 2018) to the identified ethical issue/s from 1a
2.d Identify any conflicts within or among the ethical principles from 1a, The ICN Code of ethics for nurses, the Registered nurse standards for practice, OR the Code of conduct for nurses
2.e: Identify relevant aspects of the South Australian Consent to Medical Treatment and Palliative Care Act 1995 to the ethical issue/s from 1a.

Step 3: Action - What to do in practice (approx. 350 words)
Based upon Steps 1 and 2 of the decision-making framework (McDonald & Then 2019), you are required to outline a plan to respond to the situation. Get professional assignment help service now!
3.a: Identify what options/resources are available to you in your role as a nursing student to assist you to respond to the situation.
3.b: Identify three possible relevant short-term options for your action with your scope as a nursing student
3.c: Describe your preferred relevant short-term option )from 3b) for your action within your scope as a nursing student