nedd help badly..!!!!!!

TexasPediRN · Jun 19, 2006

is really accepting gift from patient right or wrong...and if its right can you show me a proof...cause my proffesor asked us about this one..and i answered it is wrong because..when i posted it here..someone told me that its unethical to accept gift....now im confused..

Technically I would say yes, it is unethical to accept a gift. However, I think it depends on the gift itself. Did they bake you cookies? Give you an angel pin since you were such a good nurse? Give you a homemade necklace/bracelet? Give you an ornament for your christmas tree for taking such good care of their daughter?

I would accept those gifts.

In fact I have received most of the above. The ornament I was given was an angel, who looked just like this little girl that my floor took care of. Sadly, she had a chronic condition and passed away. Mom bought every person on our floor one of these ornaments as a thank you for taking such good care of her daughter. It proudly goes near the top of my tree every christmas and reminds me what nursing is all about.

Now I wouldnt accept anything greater then say, a 20 dollar value, but I do think its ok to accept little trinkets. Its not ok to accept money. I cant show you any proof, perhaps someone else can. Its just something I learned and what I feel is the right thing to do.

jmgrn65, RN · Jun 19, 2006

It is unethical to accept monetary gifts from patients, as far as I know candy, cookies etc, anything of little value is acceptable. we have some type of policy on it at work. Of course I am at home and not able to get to it. :bugeyes:

llg, PhD, RN · Jun 19, 2006

The kind of question you are asking -- whether it is OK or wrong to accept a gift -- is the kind that can not be "proved" one way or the other. It is an ethical question and in some ways, a question of what is considered helpful or not in actual practice.

As other posters have said, the true answer in real life is "It depends." You would get farther in understanding of the issue if you thought about it not in absolute "right or wrong" terms, but rather in "situational" terms. The better questions are, "Under what circumstances is it OK to accept a gift?" and "Under what circumstances is it not OK to accept a gift?" Such questions will help you develop a better understanding.

Good luck,

llg

Daytonite, BSN, RN · Jun 19, 2006

This is an ethical question. It really has no right or wrong answer. I have worked in facilities that had rules that specifically stated that employees were not to accept gifts of any kind from patients or their families. I had a family give me a $50 check one time. They kept insisting that I take it. I turned the check over to the director of nursing and she sent a letter to the family thanking them for the gift and telling them that it would be used for staff educational equipment so that all the nursing staff would benefit from it. I have also worked in private duty and received all kinds of gifts that I accepted from patients from money to planters. I, personally, don't see anything wrong with it as long as it is clear that it is something given in appreciation of your services and not something with strings attached to it. Heck! Patients bring us candy, popcorn, brownies, nuts, donuts and all other kinds of goodies that we put out at the nurses station all the time. Those are technically gifts too!

luvmy2angels · Jun 19, 2006

Were I work at now we are allowed to accept the usual candy, cookies etc that residents or families often bring in for us. We are never to accept monetary gifts. If the resident is insistant we are to accept it and turn it over to the supervisor. We can tell them that if they insist on giving us money they can donate to the resident fund. This is a fund that is totally run by the residents and thier families. They collect money year round and then it gets divided up equally to ALL the employees of our facility and given to us a bonus at Christmas time.