title: When can nurses refuse to care?
abstract: At the RCN Congress in Blackpool last year, one of the key topics discussed was the policy and practice implications which arise if nurses refuse to care for certain patients or if patients refuse to be cared for by a particular nurse. This article outlines the guidance by the RCN Ethics and Nursing Committee on when patients and nurses can exercise a right to refuse to be cared for or provide care.
mesh_terms: D004993:Ethics, Nursing; D006801:Humans; D016079:Refusal to Treat; D012956:Societies, Nursing; D016312:Treatment Refusal; D006113:United Kingdom