Paper Example on Power of Attorney (POA)

Introduction

A power of attorney is a written document that gives a third party the right to work on behalf of an individual in matters related to business, personal or legal affairs (Institute of Social Medicine, 2008). Having a power of attorney can improve the health of an individual because it ensures his or her wishes are followed.

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Enduring Power of Attorney (EPOA)

The enduring power of an attorney is the legal rights given to another person to act on behalf of someone else in legal and financial matters (Institute of Social Medicine, 2008). The enduring power of attorney ensures the person given these rights can make decisions long after the person that has given this power has lost his/her mental capacity. The enduring power of attorney can be essential to a person's health because it will ensure the best care is given to them when they cannot make decisions.

Advanced Health Care Directive (AHCD)

An Advanced Healthcare Directive is aimed at ensuring a third party has the right to decide on behalf of a patient in case of severe injury or mental incapacitation. The directive is essential in health care because it eliminates the chances of disagreement from relatives, allows a person to make the best decision on behalf of a patient and relieve the burden of decision making from family and friends at a time when they are emotionally distressed.

Guardianship

A guardianship is a court order that allows a third party to make medical decisions on behalf of another party (Kapp, 2012). The order, however, does not give the person the right to decide on other matters such as business or legal affairs. The order is essential in healthcare because it allows a patient to get the best medical attention.

Ethical Dilemma

The four moral principles will guide the ethical decisions that would guide me in making my judgment. Since the family has requested the news of terminal illness be kept away from the father, my interaction with the patient will be guided by the belief of what is the right thing to do (Nursing and Midwifery Board of Australia, 2010)2. Since the patient family believes in autonomy and individualism, it will be essential to respect the family wish and keep the news from the patients. The patient comes from a culture that believes in interdependence and community and not the western model of autonomy (Staunton & Chiarelli, 2017, p. 29). The principle of Beneficence is also applied in this case where the need to ensure the patient's health does not deteriorate is upheld. The non-maleficence tenets are also critical in this case. The principle requires a healthcare professional not to harm. If disclosing the information will harm the father as the family claim, it will be my duty to ensure I do not do any harm when taking care of the patient.

Conclusion

Since the patient has some difficulty moving, one of the care plans will be to ensure the patient conduct upper and lower body exercises every two hours. The patient will also be changed the position that he is sleeping on after several hours to relieve the pain. Additionally, the patient's energy level will be monitored in every shift to assess his range of motion.

The patient is also experiencing self-care deficit because of his inability to move smoothly. The intervention that the patent would need is setting up short-term goals and talking to him and making him understand the amount of dependency that he needs.

References

Institute of Social Medicine. (2008). Advance Directives: The Living Will and the Power of Attorney for Health Care. Evidence-Based Medical Ethics, 17-20. doi:10.1007/978-1-60327-246-9_3

Kapp, M. B. (2012). Ethical Considerations and Court Involvement in End-of-Life Decision Making. Cultural Issues in End-of-Life Decision Making Cultural issues in end-of-life decision making, 55-68. Doi:10.4135/9781452204819.n5

Nursing and Midwifery Board of Australia. (2010). Nursing and Midwifery Board of AustraliaSearch.Retrievedfromhttp://www.nursingmidwiferyboard.gov.au/Search.aspx?q=code+of+ethics

Peate, I., Wild, K., & Nair, M. (2014). Nursing Practice: Knowledge and Care. Hoboken: Wiley.

Staunton, P. J., & Chiarella, M. (2017). Law for nurses and midwives (8th ed.). Australia: Chatswood, N.S.W. Elsevier.