Emergency room case study: A 16-year-old involved in a motor vehicle accident is brought via ambulance to the emergency room you work at.
A 16-year-old involved in a motor vehicle accident is brought via ambulance to the emergency room you work at. She needs an emergency blood transfusion. Her mother, a devout Jehovah’s Witness, refuses to give permission for her daughter to receive blood products because it goes against her faith.
In your initial post answer the following questions:
- As a culturally and religiously sensitive nurse, how might you explain to this mother why her daughter needs blood?
- What are the ethical issues raised by the mother refusing blood products for her daughter?
- If the mother continued to refuse to allow her daughter to receive blood products, as a provider, what would you do?
