Swastikas & Nursing | Refusing care based upon moral objection?

Nurses General Nursing

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  1. Have you ever refused care based upon moral objection?

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As nurses, we work with many types of people.

Some really amazing people.

Some unsavory people.

Some you wouldn't want to be caught dead associating with.

Tonight, I was watching Grey's Anatomy!

I'm way behind the times as I just started only a few weeks ago.

For the die hard fans, I'm on season four so you might remember this episode.

An ambulance T-boned another ambulance.

One of the paramedics injured kept refusing care from the doctors (2 African Americans).

Come to find out the paramedic was a white supremicist and had a HUGE swastika tattooed on his abdomen.

This episode is quite timely because I cared for a very similar patient recently.

Swastika tattoos. Racist comments. The stereotypical white supremacist.

It was quite uncomfortable to say the least.

He assumed that I was like him.

Whenever he spoke about the African American CNAs, he spoke in derogatory terms that I don't feel the need to repeat here.

We've all heard these words before.

It was even more uncomfortable when he assumed I would agree or that I was like him.

He assumed I believed in the same skewed moral values he had about African Americans.

I understand we are supposed to objective during our care.

At the same time, I DO NOT share those racist and hateful views these types of people have.

I've never understood it and I avoid anyone that is like that in my life. Naturally, I cared for this patient the same as anyone else. That's my job.

However, my question is:

Can a nurse refuse to care for a patient based upon moral objection?

Specializes in Hospice, Palliative Care.

Based on my understanding, there are only a few areas for which the law supports nurses refusing care. Two areas that I know involve the purposeful taking of life. Nurses and doctors have the right, supported by law, to say they will not participate in the outright murder of an innocent unborn baby. Nurses and doctors have the right to refuse to participate in assisted suicide in even states for which it is legal. My employer already knows, pre-hire, where I stand on these issues. I've already had to tell hospice patients who have asked if our agency helps with assisted suicide that will illegal in the state of Pennsylvania, should it ever become legal and they were to request it, I would have to recuse myself from being a part of their care team. I have the full support of my employer in this matter especially since these issues were discussed pre-hire.

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You're splitting hairs here. Of course I would reassign the nurse out of fear of injuring the patient. Then I'd report her to the board. There ya go.

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Specializes in Pediatric Critical Care.
As an exercise in thought, substitute out the profession of "nurse" and ask the question again:

Can a police officer refuse to help a person based upon moral objection?

Can a firefighter refuse to fight a house fire based upon moral objection?

Can a physician not treat someone based upon moral objection?

Can an EMS worker refuse to treat someone based upon moral objection?

It should be a resounding "NO".

I have another thought experiment that might be interesting to consider:

Can a restaurant refuse to serve a person based upon moral objection?

Can a grocer refuse to sell to a person based upon moral objection?

Can a small business bakery owner refuse to bake a cake for a person based upon moral objection?

Can a librarian refuse to check out books to a person based upon moral objection?

If your answer to these questions differs from the above questions (re: police, firefighter, MD, EMS)...why? What makes it different?

To be clear, I am not looking for any specific answer to support a viewpoint here. Simply a thought experiment.

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As a nurse, I have never refused an assignment based on somebody else's convictions. However, if somebody makes racist comments I will tell them that this is inappropriate, I do not wish to engage in such conversation and that we do not discriminate.

I think it is acceptable for people to switch assignments though.

The other day, I felt that the family was not comfortable with me because I do not sound "American" enough - they did not say it outright but there were plenty of comments and behavior towards me was very confrontational. So I called my colleague and asked her to see that family since 1. I did not feel that my nerves at the end of the day were good enough to tolerate that shenanigans and 2. I did not want to put up with that. I felt that I would not be able to serve the pat in an effective manner. Luckily my colleague had not problems with that and I told the family that somebody else would come by.

If she had not been available I would have done my best but I really did not think that I would be effective and that they would listen to what I have to say.

And no - racist do not have the privilege to disseminate their crazy stuff and we all have to allow that because of freedom of speech etc..I am not a moral relativist.

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