Moral decision making in neonatal intensive care.
OBJECTIVE
To gain information about the perspective that neonatal intensive-care unit nurses use to make moral decisions.


METHODS
Descriptive.


METHODS
Neonatal intensive-care unit of a large teaching hospital in the midwestern United States.


METHODS
Convenience sample of 26 female nurses working in a neonatal intensive-care unit.


METHODS
Audiotaped, semistructured interviews and demographic questionnaires.


RESULTS
The results indicated that most (65%) of the nurses used the care perspective to make moral decisions. A small number (12%) used the justice perspective, and the remaining nurses (23%) used a combined care and justice perspective.


CONCLUSIONS
Both the care and justice perspectives were found to be important for understanding how nurses make moral decisions.
Chally
P S
PS
Concordia University, West Suburban College of Nursing, Erie, Austin, Oak Park, IL 60320.
D000328:Adult; D001291:Attitude of Health Personnel; D026686:Beneficence; D002965:Classification; D003657:Decision Making; D004645:Empathy; D026689:Ethical Analysis; D004993:Ethics, Nursing; D033161:Government Regulation; D006784:Hospitals, Teaching; D006801:Humans; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D007363:Intensive Care Units, Neonatal; D008875:Middle Aged; D015146:Midwestern United States; D035863:Moral Development; D017283:Neonatal Nursing / Q000379:methods* / Q000592:standards; D015404:Nursing Methodology Research; D009741:Nursing Staff, Hospital / Q000523:psychology*; D010344:Patient Advocacy; D011788:Quality of Life; D012935:Social Justice