In complex ethical cases, the first thing to do is focus on each alternative’s perspective. The nurse’s task is to understand why acting in one way or another would greatly benefit the population. Second, the nurse must understand her responsibility to keep people healthy. Based on this, the decision will be as follows: The nurse must receive treatment first. This decision is justified by the fact that only the nurse in the village has the skills to treat.
Only a nurse can help maintain the condition of those already cured and those just waiting for treatment. The nurse can also share these skills with others: she can teach them how to recognize the symptoms of infection, deal with particularly severe symptoms, and isolate people with the disease in time. For example, during COVID-19, medical personnel emphasized their personal protection because no one else could help people with severe infections. If the staff did not protect themselves, the mortality rate from coronavirus infection would have been higher (Massetti et al., 2022). Linton and Koonmen (2020) point out that without self-care and self-care, nurses’ productivity declines. Hofmeyer et al. (2020) also indicate that providing complete care to others without self-care is impossible. Based on this, it is up to the nurse to get treatment and treat other adults over 11 years of age.
After the nurse has treated herself, she must save the remaining 24 adults. In this case, a balance must be weighed between children aged 11-16, who cannot take care of themselves fully, and the remaining adults. Since only 24 doses of antibiotics remain, the nurse must select adults who can do the hard work and help relieve other people’s symptoms. The antibiotic will make them resistant to infection and help treat other people. The clearest example of an adult being prioritized is life-threatening during pregnancy. Doctors are obliged to choose the woman’s life because the child has no legal rights, and the loss of an already loved one is not comparable to the loss of a new one. Consequently, prioritizing the adult population is better than leaving the nurse with children who will not assist in treating adults of different ages.
Ethical Approach
In this case, the choice of any age population violates the ethical principles of medical care. However, in terms of maximizing effect and well-being, the choice toward adults is more relevant. If a nurse chooses to save 50 children under 11, there are the following consequences. First, nurse will die and leave 150 people without help; second, 100 people will die, and the remaining group will not be able to take care of themselves and will also die soon. It should be taken into account that saving 50 children will not lead to the continued successful functioning of society because they will not be aware of how to behave. Also, if children under 11 years old are made up of infants and toddlers, then the maximization factor will be almost zero. There will be no support in the society in which they remain, and the nurse will indirectly trigger the extinction of the entire village.
Relationship with Society
This will be the most challenging consequence of the decision because it will require communicating with adults who will protest the loss of children. The important thing here is to rely on the principle of autonomy – the refusal of patient care. Although it is a difficult decision, I will have to explain all available information to the community and prepare individualized accommodations to reduce the risk of disease transmission. Because I am a nurse, I will take more risks than others and do what I can to keep children and adults who do not get the vaccine healthy.
References
Hofmeyer, A., Taylor, R., & Kennedy, K. (2020). Knowledge for nurses to better care for themselves so they can better care for others during the Covid-19 pandemic and beyond. Nurse education today, 94, 104503. Web.
Linton, M., & Koonmen, J. (2020). Self-care as an ethical obligation for nurses. Nursing ethics. Advance online publication. Web.
Massetti, G. M., Jackson, B. R., Brooks, J.T., Perrine, C. G., Reott, E., Hall, A. J., Lubar, D., Williams, I. T., Ritchey, M. D., Patel, P., Liburd, L. C., & Mahon, B. E. (2022). Summary of guidance for minimizing the impact of COVID-19 on individual persons, communities, and health care systems — United States, August 2022. Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, 71, 1057-1064. Web.