title: The right to know: the nurse's role in informing patients.
abstract: This paper analyses a situation often found in practice and demonstrates an ethical issue in truth-telling and its effect on nursing practice for patients. The situation identified occurred in a surgical unit, where the author was a night sister.
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Gillan
mesh_terms: D003110:Colonic Neoplasms / Q000451:nursing* / Q000601:surgery; D003125:Colostomy / Q000451:nursing; D004993:Ethics, Nursing; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009723:Nurse-Patient Relations; D011369:Professional-Patient Relations; D013727:Terminal Care; D014342:Truth Disclosure