American Nursing Association - Admission/Application Essay Example

Considering that the baby is in critical condition already and on the ventilator, my response would be to tell the mother that taking the baby off of its support systems would not be a good idea at this time.  I would tell her that she might be able to hold the baby later, depending on what everybody decides.In my opinion, to keep the baby safe at this point, it needs to be kept away from the mother. She has clearly only harmed the baby up until this point, and my decision is for the baby’s own health and safety.

Furthermore, until social services make a decision, it is important to make sure the mother does not have a chance to do any further harm to her baby.There are a few ethical principles in action in this case. First, there is the right of mothers to be able to spend time with their children. Generally, after a mother has given birth to a baby, she will be allowed to hold it, as long as it is seen as acceptable to the child’s state of health. In this case, though, the baby is not necessarily in a healthy condition, and the mother, herself, has caused the harm to the baby, so the best thing to do is to actually keep her away from the baby.

Another ethical conflict is the fact that the mother did tell me and nobody else about her use of the drugs. Ultimately, as a nurse, I would be required to report this to social services or I could also be held liable, but it is certain that the mother did not know that and probably did not wish me to tell others. However, this kind of secret cannot be kept because it has to do with the child’s health.I do not feel that this situation permits for utilitarianism. Utilitarianism means picking the outcome that causes the most happiness for all of those involved.