Employer Retaliation: The Myth and the Reality

Abstract

It is easier to identify an ethical dilemma than to solve it; this is the nature of the beast. In the process of deciding what to do, nurses are often pulled by conflicting demands from employers, patients, physicians, and other nurses: the feeling is that no resolution can be found which will satisfy everyone. A most difficult situation arises when the nurse feels an obligation to act in the best interests of patient care, but knows that to do so may be detrimental to her employer. When this happens, the nurse may fear that action to protect the patient will result in her being fired or some other form of retaliation by the employer. This fear is not entirely unfounded — employers do sometimes fire nurses who speak out against institutional policies. But a recent federal court case demonstrates that a hospital cannot summarily fire a nurse who acts responsibly in seeking to bring about institutional change.