Discussion postHealthcare ethics

Identify one ethical decision-making model that is of interest to you for identifying ethical dilemmas.

The prompt says the model does not matter and applying one does. That is a strong claim and it points the answer at preparation rather than at choosing a framework.

Editorial process

Last reviewed · August 25, 2026

Written by

Maren Caldwell

MSN, RN, CNE

Medical-surgical nursing, pharmacology and NCLEX preparation

Reviewed by

Dr. Tessa Redmond

DNP, RN, CNE

Evidence-based practice and clinical education

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Interpret the task
Assignment instructions
Deliverables
Proposed outline
Research plan
Reference shortlist
Final review

Preparation, not model selection

The prompt makes an explicit claim worth taking seriously: it does not matter which model the nurse leader subscribes to, only that a model is applied. That rules out an answer built around comparing frameworks and points instead at what preparation actually involves. The clash the question names is specific too, between clinical ethics and organisational ethics, and it has a recognisable shape. Clinical ethics reasons from the individual patient, from autonomy, beneficence, non-maleficence and justice; organisational ethics reasons from stewardship of finite resources, obligations to staff, contractual and regulatory duties and the survival of the institution. Neither is illegitimate, and a nurse leader occupies the seam between them, which is why the dilemma lands there rather than at the bedside or in the boardroom. That seam is where the dilemma actually lands, rather than at the bedside or in the boardroom, and saying so locates the whole discussion correctly.

Preparation then has parts you can name. Individually, it means being able to state a dilemma in the form of two defensible obligations rather than as a grievance, since most ethical distress is initially expressed as a complaint about a decision and the analytical work is separating the principle from the frustration. Organisationally, it means the structures existing before they are needed: a functioning ethics committee with a route front-line staff can actually use, ethics consultation available at the hour dilemmas occur rather than on weekday afternoons, debriefing after cases that caused distress, and a policy on conscientious objection that is known in advance. For staff nurses specifically, preparation means practice on cases where nothing is at stake, because the first time someone reasons through a dilemma should not be while it is happening. Naming moral distress as the predictable consequence of unresolved clashes, and turnover as its consequence in turn, is what connects this to leadership rather than to philosophy.

Likely learning objectives

Answer a model-agnostic prompt with method rather than framework comparison.
Characterise the clinical against organisational ethics clash.
State a dilemma as two defensible obligations.
Identify structures that must exist before a dilemma occurs.

Assignment instructions

Read the full question

Review every instruction before using the planning guidance that follows.

NSG 6620 Week 10 Assignment 1 DQ 1 Discussion Question 1: Ethical Dilemmas and Nurse Leaders Almost every day, nurse leaders confront challenges or issues involving ethical dilemmas.Ethical dilemmas occur with respect to staff, patients and their families, or the business or strategic decisions made by the healthcare administration.One of the essential skills and competencies of twenty-first-century nurse leaders is the ability to peel away the layers of each ethical dilemma and determine the underlying ethical principle.There are numerous ethical decision-making models, and it truly does not matter to which model the nurse leader subscribes.However, it does matter that the nurse leader applies concepts of an ethical decision-making model in this executive leadership capacity. Using the readings for the week, the South University Online Library, and the Internet, respond to the following: Explain the various steps that nurse leaders can take to prepare themselves and staff nurses for dealing effectively with dilemmas arising from the clash between clinical and organizational ethics. Identify one ethical decision-making model that is of interest to you for identifying ethical dilemmas. What is an ethical principle? How you would apply an ethical principle in your current or a former setting to inform ethical decision making on a particular healthcare issue? Comment on the postings of at least two peers. NSG 6620 Week 10 Assignment 1 DQ 1 Evaluation Criteria: Explained the various steps that nurse leaders can take to prepare themselves and staff nurses for dealing effectively with dilemmas arising from the clash between clinical and organizational ethics. Identified one ethical decision-making model that is of interest to you for identifying ethical dilemmas. Described what an ethical principle is, and how you would apply an ethical principle in your current or a former setting to inform ethical decision making on a particular healthcare issue. Justified your answers with appropriate research and reasoning. Commented on the postings of at least two peers.

Course-wide instructions that accompany this question

ADDITIONAL INSTRUCTIONS FOR THE CLASS Discussion Questions (DQ) Initial responses to the DQ should address all components of the questions asked, include a minimum of one scholarly source, and be at least 250 words. Successful responses are substantive (i.e., add something new to the discussion, engage others in the discussion, well-developed idea) and include at least one scholarly source. One or two sentence responses, simple statements of agreement or “good post,” and responses that are off-topic will not count as substantive. Substantive responses should be at least 150 words. I encourage you to incorporate the readings from the week (as applicable) into your responses. Weekly Participation Your initial responses to the mandatory DQ do not count toward participation and are graded separately. In addition to the DQ responses, you must post at least one reply to peers (or me) on three separate days, for a total of three replies. Participation posts do not require a scholarly source/citation (unless you cite someone else’s work). Part of your weekly participation includes viewing the weekly announcement and attesting to watching it in the comments. These announcements are made to ensure you understand everything that is due during the week. APA Format and Writing Quality Familiarize yourself with APA format and practice using it correctly. It is used for most writing assignments for your degree. Visit the Writing Center in the Student Success Center, under the Resources tab in LoudCloud for APA paper templates, citation examples, tips, etc. Points will be deducted for poor use of APA format or absence of APA format (if required). Cite all sources of information! When in doubt, cite the source. Paraphrasing also requires a citation. I highly recommend using the APA Publication Manual, 6th edition. Use of Direct Quotes I discourage overutilization of direct quotes in DQs and assignments at the Masters’ level and deduct points accordingly. As Masters’ level students, it is important that you be able to critically analyze and interpret information from journal articles and other resources. Simply restating someone else’s words does not demonstrate an understanding of the content or critical analysis of the content. It is best to paraphrase content and cite your source. LopesWrite Policy For assignments that need to be submitted to LopesWrite, please be sure you have received your report and Similarity Index (SI) percentage BEFORE you do a “final submit” to me. Once you have received your report, please review it. This report will show you grammatical, punctuation, and spelling errors that can easily be fixed. Take the extra few minutes to review instead of getting counted off for these mistakes. Review your similarities. Did you forget to cite something? Did you not paraphrase well enough? Is your paper made up of someone else’s thoughts more than your own? Visit the Writing Center in the Student Success Center, under the Resources tab in LoudCloud for tips on improving your paper and SI score. Late Policy The university’s policy on late assignments is 10% penalty PER DAY LATE. This also applies to late DQ replies. Please communicate with me if you anticipate having to submit an assignment late. I am happy to be flexible, with advance notice. We may be able to work out an extension based on extenuating circumstances. If you do not communicate with me before submitting an assignment late, the GCU late policy will be in effect. I do not accept assignments that are two or more weeks late unless we have worked out an extension. As per policy, no assignments are accepted after the last day of class. Any assignment submitted after midnight on the last day of class will not be accepted for grading. Communication Communication is so very important. There are multiple ways to communicate with me: Questions to Instructor Forum: This is a great place to ask course content or assignment questions. If you have a question, there is a good chance one of your peers does as well. This is a public forum for the class. Individual Forum: This is a private forum to ask me questions or send me messages. This will be checked at least once every 24 hours.

What Week 10 DQ 1 asks for

01An explanation of the steps nurse leaders can take to prepare themselves for dilemmas arising from the clash between clinical and organisational ethics.
02The steps they can take to prepare staff nurses for the same.
03Application of ethical decision-making model concepts in an executive leadership capacity.
04Support from the week's readings, the library and other sources.