Description
Omer and Salah were staff nurses on the night shift in the Pediatric Surgical Unit. As they nearlyfinishingtheir work on the night shift, Mr. Omer noted that a 6-year-old diabetic patient recovered from minor surgery looked very pale and was sweating. When he was unable to awaken the patient, he notified his colleague and best friend, Mr. Salah.Together they tested the Childs’s blood sugar. The results confirmed Mr. Omer’s fears: The child was extremely hypoglycemic. He called the resident and assisted him in stabilizing the patient. The child recovered and was discharged home 2 days later. The next day, Mr. Omer reviewed the incident, stating how surprised he was to find the child hypoglycemic. At first, Mr. Salah did not say much, but finally he admitted that it was all his fault. He had mistakenly given the child too much insulin. He had not gone back to check on the child and realized his mistake only when Mr. Omer found the child was unresponsive. Mr. Omer was surprised and asked his friend whether he had completed an incident report or notified the child’s physician afterward. Mr.Salah saidhe had decided not to report the mistake because it would create an inquiry and put him introuble. “I can’t do that right now,” he stated. He applied for promotion to clinical ladder program and the application under review. Mr. Saleh afraid that the incident would hinder his promotion and he will lose extra money came from it. He looked at Mr. Omer and said sadly, “And I hope you’re not going to report it, either. I told you this in confidence and as a friend. It would be unethical for you to do anything about the mistake. After all, it was just a mistake, and the patientwas recovered. I’ll be more careful in the future.”
After reading the situation, please answer the following questions:
1- What is the ethical dilemma in this situation?
2- What should Mr. Omer do? Solve this case, justifying your decision by using MORAL ethical decision-making.
