ANA to study how disasters affect standards of care
ANA salutes nurses who helped during Katrina
The American Nurses Association (ANA) is looking back on the role of nurses during and after Hurricane Katrina in August 2005 and wants to take what was learned during that time, coupled with the ANA Code of Ethics, and come up with guidelines and policies to assist nurses in making ethical decisions during disasters.
"Natural disasters place nurses in unfamiliar and unusual conditions within the health care environment that may necessitate adaptations to recognized standards of nursing practice," according to the ANA Center for Ethics, which released a statement in September on the role of nurses during Katrina specifically and during disaster situations in general.
The ANA issued the statement, which includes guidance based on its Code of Ethics, and announced an upcoming policy conference (in June 2007) that will address "Nursing Care in Life, Death, and Disaster."
Fundamentals don't change when disaster hits
"ANA is not in a position to comment on the specifics of any situation that occurred during Hurricane Katrina," the association's ethics center concludes. "We do know that the conditions for rendering nursing care immediately after Hurricane Katrina were horrendous, and it is difficult to judge retrospectively some of the care provided under those awful circumstances."
A fundamental principle of the ANA Code of Ethics is that the interests of the patient are paramount.
The code "is what gives each of us honor and respect, dignity and authority, and what serves as the solid foundation from which we are all empowered to support our nation's health care system."
The ANA statement includes the observation that "in our criminal justice system, defendants are presumed innocent unless proven guilty." Two nurses, Cheri Landry and Lori Budo, and a physician, Anna Pou, were arrested in July 2006 following an investigation by state authorities who say at least four patients at Memorial Medical Center in New Orleans died from being injected with a mixture of sedatives and painkillers.
The ANA declined to comment to Medical Ethics Advisor beyond the information included in its official statement; however, nurses Budo and Landry and Dr. Pou have adamantly denied killing patients.
Furthermore, Landry told the CBS news program 60 Minutes in September that she and Budo had no intention of abandoning their patients and getting to safety themselves until their patents were safe.
ANA urges nurses to talk about disaster
Nurses should discuss, with other nurses and health care providers, how to adapt standards of practice during a disaster, the ANA suggests.
In response to growing recognition that during a disaster or mass casualty event existing medical materials and health human resources will be stretched thin and, therefore, standards of practice will have to adapt, the association is convening a national policy conference June 20-22 in Atlanta, to review altered standards of care and potential adaptations of nursing practice during disasters. Educational sessions will provide background on disaster response and preparedness.
For more information on the ANA statement on nursing practice during disasters, or on the upcoming policy conference, go to www.nursingworld.org/meetings.
The American Nurses Association (ANA) is looking back on the role of nurses during and after Hurricane Katrina in August 2005 and wants to take what was learned during that time, coupled with the ANA Code of Ethics, and come up with guidelines and policies to assist nurses in making ethical decisions during disasters.You have reached your article limit for the month. Subscribe now to access this article plus other member-only content.
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