Governing therapy choices: power/knowledge in the treatment of progressive renal failure.
This article outlines the struggle between the power of the health care professional and the rights of the individual to choose freely a modality of treatment. Nurses are instrumental in assisting patients in making the best decision for a therapy they will have to assume for the rest of their lives. In guiding patients' decision, nurses must take into account these unavoidable contingencies: changes in lifestyle, nutritional restrictions, level of acceptance, compliance issues, ease of training and availability of support/facilities. Ensuring that the patient makes an informed decision is therefore an ongoing challenge for nurses as they are taking part in a delicate balancing act between not directly influencing the patient's decision while making sure the patient is accurately informed.
Holmes
Dave
D
School of Nursing, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Canada. dholmes@uottawa.ca
Perron
Amélie M
AM
Savoie
Marc
M
D003657:Decision Making / Q000941:ethics; D004993:Ethics, Nursing; D006801:Humans; D024802:Nurse's Role; D009723:Nurse-Patient Relations / Q000941:ethics*; D010358:Patient Participation; D028701:Patient Rights / Q000941:ethics*; D026684:Personal Autonomy; D011209:Power, Psychological; D051436:Renal Insufficiency, Chronic / Q000451:nursing / Q000628:therapy*