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Workplace Safety as an Ethical Imperative in Nursing

“How do we honor the role of the nurse by building systems that reflect the same level of commitment they bring to patient care?”

Workplace violence (WPV) remains a persistent and serious challenge in health care. Nurses, bound by the American Nurses Association (ANA) Code of Ethics to provide compassionate care and prevent harm, experience assaults at significantly higher rates than other health care professionals—a trend that intensified during the COVID-19 pandemic. These experiences are not only harmful; they create a profound ethical conflict by directly undermining professional role obligations and disrupting the alignment between ethical expectations and workplace realities. This misalignment diminishes professional role clarity, fosters cognitive dissonance in nurses’ professional role identity, and ultimately strains their commitment to the nursing profession.

Nurses’ ability to uphold compassion and provide nursing care is compromised when their safety is not protected. The 2025 revision of the Code of Ethics, particularly Provision 5, directly addresses this concern. It affirms what we’ve long known to be true:

“The nurse has moral duties to self as a person of inherent dignity and worth including an expectation of a safe place to work that fosters flourishing, authenticity of self at work, and self-respect through integrity and professional competence.”

This guidance reframes workplace safety—not as a matter of personal resilience or policy—but as an ethical obligation rooted in nursing values and woven into the nursing professional role. It highlights the responsibility of organizations, leaders, and the profession to ensure nurses can […]

The Harm Done by Dismantling USAID

The Trump administration dismantled the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) abruptly in February, placing nearly all of its over 10,000 employees on administrative leave, freezing appropriated funds, and cancelling nearly 5,800 USAID-managed foreign assistance awards—effectively closing an agency that has led in global humanitarian assistance since it was created by President John F. Kennedy in 1961.

Shutting down the agency has dealt a devastating blow to low- and middle-income countries’ efforts to alleviate poverty, provide health care, and improve public health and education. USAID supported a wide variety of critical global programs, including  family planning, disease prevention and treatment, immunizations, and famine relief. Nurses played a critical role in USAID, providing education and training to strengthen severely limited in-country nursing and midwifery workforces, delivering direct care, and leading immunization and other health programs.

Deadly results.

A child in Tajikistan receives a polio vaccination during a campaign to halt a polio outbreak. Photo: USAID, via Wikimedia Commons

An estimated 119,000 children and 57,000 adults have died as a result of USAID funding cuts, according to a real-time tracking tool developed by Boston University associate […]

International Travel Preparation: Health and Safety Guide for Nurses

Exposure to infectious diseases during international travel has been in the news recently and it’s important to be aware of the types of risk posed by international travel as well as recommended pre- and post-travel interventions. Nurses, as a trusted health care voice, may receive questions from patients, family members, and others within their community—and nurses themselves may be preparing for international travel.

image via Unsplash

Therefore, how individuals can be be best prepared for international travel should be a point in patient education and personal education for nurses. International travel can be an enriching experience, but it also comes with certain health and safety risks. Proper preparation helps mitigate these risks and ensures a smoother and safer journey. The following information provides essential information on

  • risk assessment
  • food and water safety
  • insect protection
  • general safety considerations
  • and medical preparedness, including vaccines and travel-related medications.

More detailed information can be obtained by going to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) website and consulting the Yellow Book, a recognized authority document freely available for access and download.

Risk Assessment

2025-04-14T10:20:37-04:00April 14th, 2025|infectious diseases, Nursing, Public health|1 Comment

A Journey Through the Alps: Insights and Strengths for Nurses

Photo courtesy of the author. All rights reserved.

Last summer, I embarked on a transformative 12-day hike through the rugged and breathtaking
French Alps. Over the course of 70 miles, I traversed daunting mountain peaks, serene valleys, and
unyielding landscapes that tested both my physical and mental endurance. But in addition to the
physical challenge, the journey provided me with invaluable insights that I now see reflect so many
of the trials and lessons faced by nurses every day.

The Steep Terrain: Critical Thinking in Action

As the trail began, the path was rocky and steep, each step demanding thoughtful precision. There were times when the ground beneath me seemed unstable, and the risk of a fall felt imminent. My choices—where I placed my feet, how I balanced my body, and when to adjust my pace—required quick, critical decisions. The physical landscape demanded that I pay attention to my environment, evaluating each move carefully, and I realized how closely this mirrored the work of nurses in the clinical world.

Every nurse, like a hiker on a treacherous path, must assess each situation with care and precision. A misstep—whether in clinical judgment or action—can have serious consequences. Nurses are continually […]

2025-04-08T09:52:36-04:00April 8th, 2025|career, Nursing, nursing career, wellness|0 Comments

Grieving the Words: When Language Becomes a Battleground

Language is deeply personal. It reflects our values, identities, and professional contributions. Losing the words that have shaped our work can feel like erasure—like being forced to abandon principles we hold dear.

Yet, language evolves. It always has. We have witnessed this in every sphere of life. Once, it was acceptable for me to label my patient as “CPMR” (cerebral palsy with mental retardation). Just typing that phrase now makes me cringe. Today, we use person-first language, recognizing the dignity of individuals with intellectual or developmental disabilities.

As a Black woman, I have seen this shift in my own identity. We have been Negroes, Afro-Americans, African-Americans, and now—once again—Black. We have always been Black. In the 1970s, we were told to say it loud and proud, yet even today, some hesitate to use the term.

But something feels different about this current evolution of language. This shift is not happening organically, on our own terms. It is being forced—politically, legislatively, and strategically. I will admit that I have gone through a grieving process because of it. Kübler-Ross’s stages of grief remind me that loss, whether of a loved one or the language that defines the essence of one’s body of work, can evoke denial, anger, bargaining, depression, and […]

2025-03-31T09:28:27-04:00March 31st, 2025|Black nurses, Nursing, Public health|1 Comment
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