Embracing Ethical Principles for Nursing Education

Abstract

CHALLENGING ETHICAL ISSUES ABOUND IN NURSING AND HEALTH CARE, AND ARE NOT LIMITED TO THE PRACTICE SETTING. Nurse educators face numerous ethical dilemmas in the academic environment as well. In this issue of Nursing Perspectives, the topic of ethics is addressed from various perspectives, including the ethical knowledge base of nursing students who are enrolled in advanced practice education and the increasing incidence of incivility in academia. These are timely topics for all who teach in our nursing programs. I believe that facilitating the development of our students' professional values and, thus, the ethical foundation of their nursing practice is one of our greatest responsibilities as nurse educators. We serve as role models for our students in our professional interactions with others, and how we conduct ourselves when addressing ethical dilemmas can become a teaching- learning moment for students. Some of the ethical challenges that we experience as nurse educators include academic dishonesty (of students or peers); incivility among and between students, faculty, and/or administrators; the spreading of unfounded, damaging rumors; and violations of confidentiality, to cite just a few examples. The widespread use of social media and email communication plays a role in escalating the incidence of ethical compromises in our relationships with others. It is not easy for any nurse educator to face these challenges, and it is especially difficult if one is new to the faculty role and lacking confidence in one's ability to competently confront these issues. The NLN has heard the voice of its members concerning ethical issues unique to nursing education. Many of you have raised concerns about the ethical challenges you are facing in your nursing programs and have sought guidance on how best to address them. The League has responded by developing the document Ethical Principles for Nursing Education as a foundational guide to ethical practices for nurse educators. (The text, excerpted in the Headlines from the NLN in this issue, is online at www.nln.org.) This new document draws on the NLN core values of caring, integrity, diversity, and excellence - values integrated into and reflected throughout all the work in which we engage. As educators and administrators, it is our responsibility to create the teaching-learning environment that we want exhibited within our nursing programs and to convey the values of that environment through our words and our actions. …