title: Confidence and knowledge regarding ethics among advanced practice nurses.
abstract: As the scope of advanced practice nursing expands and the educational requirements increase, so do the ethical responsibilities. How prepared are advanced practice nurses (APNs) to manage the ethical challenges in advanced practice? The purpose of this study was to determine APNs' ethics knowledge and perceived level of confidence in their ability to manage ethical problems in advanced practice. Assuming ethics knowledge and abilities of APNs are similar to those of medical residents, a survey instrument for medical residents was modified for use with APNs. Responses to the modified survey indicated a fairly high level of confidence but a fairly low level of knowledge. Studies show that ethics education can be effective in improving knowledge, confidence, and ethical behavior. Given the expanding role of APNs as doctors of nursing practice, research is needed to determine the ethics knowledge needs and teaching strategies to better prepare nurses for the challenges of advanced practice.
authors.affiliation: Marquette University College of Nursing, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA. claabs@wi.rr.com
authors.forename: Carolyn A
authors.initials: CA
authors.lastname: Laabs
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D057179:Advanced Practice Nursing / Q000193:education* / Q000941:ethics*; D000368:Aged; D004500:Education, Graduate; D004993:Ethics, Nursing / Q000193:education; D005260:Female; D019538:Health Care Surveys; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D015146:Midwestern United States