running head: ETHICAL COMPETENCE IN “DO NOT RESUSCITATE (DNR)” ORDER:

WHAT AFFECTS THE ETHICAL COMPETENCE OF HEALTHCARE PROVIDERS IN

CARING FOR TERMINALLY-ILL CLIENTS IN DNR ORDER? 1

Ethical Competence in “Do Not Resuscitate (DNR)” Order: What affects the ethical competence
of healthcare providers in caring for terminally-ill clients in DNR order?

Guzman, John Wayne Tactay

January 2021
ETHICAL COMPETENCE IN “DO NOT RESUSCITATE (DNR)” ORDER: WHAT
AFFECTS THE ETHICAL COMPETENCE OF HEALTHCARE PROVIDERS IN CARING
FOR TERMINALLY-ILL CLIENTS IN DNR ORDER? 2

Ethical Competence in “Do Not Resuscitate (DNR)” Order: What affects the ethical
competence of healthcare providers in caring for terminally-ill clients in DNR order?

“Do not resuscitate” or DNR decisions are frequently made in hospital setting and in

cases where the patient is faced with a terminal disease like cancer. Physicians and nurses may

face related ethical dilemmas. Ethics is considered a basic competence in health care and can be

understood as a capacity to handle a task that involves an ethical dilemma in an adequate,

ethically responsible manner, Haddad and Geiger (2020). One model of ethical competence for

healthcare staff includes three main aspects: being, doing and knowing, suggesting that ethical

competence requires abilities of character, action and knowledge. Ethical competence can be

developed through experience, communication and education, and a supportive environment is

necessary for maintaining a high ethical competence, Hemberg (2020).

In almost every kind of care, patients can sometimes be considered to have such a poor

prognosis that they would not survive cardiopulmonary resuscitation for cardiac arrest, or would

survive with poor function and quality of life. A do-not-resuscitate (DNR) order can then be

made by the responsible physician. The meaning of DNR is that neither basic (heart

compressions and ventilation) nor advanced (defibrillator or medicines) CPR should be

performed. If the patient does not have a DNR order, resuscitation must start within 60 s,

according to the international guidelines. Such guidelines also exist in Philippine setting. In the

care for terminally-ill patients, decisions on DNR are made regularly, but the context of these

decisions can differ between the specialties, American Nurses Association Center for Ethics and

Human Rights (2012). Due to the severity, and often also stigmatization, of a terminally-ill
ETHICAL COMPETENCE IN “DO NOT RESUSCITATE (DNR)” ORDER: WHAT
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diagnosis, and the occasionally long curative treatment periods, patients and their families might

be vulnerable in these situations. This imposes major ethical demands on making decisions

regarding DNR, and the information given must be clear and adapted to the situation at hand.

Previous researches have revealed ethical dilemmas, which nurses and other health care

providers may face in relation to DNR decisions in patients care. Ethical dilemmas are situations

in which a person must choose between actions that are apprehended as equally correct ethically

affecting the competence of these healthcare providers clinically. The choice renders one action

deselected, and it is therefore impossible to perform all ethically important actions. Ågren

Bolmsjö et al. (2006) describe an ethical dilemma as a situation in which there is a choice

between different actions, and it is impossible to fulfill all parties’ interests in a way that satisfies

everyone.

Examples of ethical dilemmas in DNR decisions in terminally-ill care as revealed by

previous studies include: disagreement in the team regarding whether a patient should have a

DNR order or not; when patients and relatives think differently about DNR; when a choice of

whether or not to implement a DNR order stands between patient autonomy and the patient’s

medical prognosis; and when the patient and family have not been informed of the DNR order by

the physician and ask the nurse about what has been decided. When ethical dilemmas occur,

different values, norms or interests must be weighed against each other. Different models have

been developed for such moral judgements and there are well-established examples of theories

that judge ethical dilemmas based on consequences like in utilitarianism, where the goal is to

maximize the good consequences for as many individuals as possible or duties and rights often

so-called deontological theories, where an action is regarded as right or wrong in itself,

ETHICAL COMPETENCE IN “DO NOT RESUSCITATE (DNR)” ORDER: WHAT
AFFECTS THE ETHICAL COMPETENCE OF HEALTHCARE PROVIDERS IN CARING
FOR TERMINALLY-ILL CLIENTS IN DNR ORDER? 4

irrespective of the consequences, such as telling the truth or not harming others, Peterson et. al.

(2018). These traditions are mirrored in the four well-known ethical principles of autonomy,

non-maleficence, beneficence and justice. The principles of autonomy and justice are derived

from deontological reasoning, meaning that we have a duty to respect human dignity in every

person and treat everyone as equals, regardless of consequences. The principles of non-

maleficence and beneficence are utilitarian in character, as they prescribe maximizing the well-

being of others by promoting good consequences and limiting harm. Apart from utilitarianism

and deontology the ethics of virtue is another well-established theory in medical ethics. Here, the

character of the agent is at the fore. A person is virtuous in that he or she develops certain

characteristics. Thereby, he or she can develop a suitable manner of action for a certain context

or practice. A basic assumption is that a ‘good’ person performs ‘right’ actions.

As ethics is considered a basic competence in health care, ethics is part of the curriculum

in the training for both nurses and physicians in international education system, Grady, Hoskins

& Ulrich (2018). Since training for physicians is longer than for nurses, the amount of ethics

education is a bit larger for physicians than for nurses. Further, ethical guidelines have been

developed for different staff categories, e.g., the International Council of Nurses (ICN) Code of

Ethics and the International Code of Medical Ethics for Physicians. But ethical guidelines have

also been developed in relation to certain diagnoses or decisions, for example DNR. According

to Peterson (2018), these guidelines state, among other things, that there is no ethical difference

between refraining from CPR and starting CPR and then withholding it. The guidelines also state

that, concerning the claim for information and patient consent, there may be situations in which a

patient and or a significant other may suffer more as a result of being informed of a DNR
ETHICAL COMPETENCE IN “DO NOT RESUSCITATE (DNR)” ORDER: WHAT
AFFECTS THE ETHICAL COMPETENCE OF HEALTHCARE PROVIDERS IN CARING
FOR TERMINALLY-ILL CLIENTS IN DNR ORDER? 5

decision than if they had not been informed. As guidelines, they are advisory, unlike laws, which

are compulsory.

Therefore, basing from the above mentioned theories and researches, the researcher

would want to explore the argument whether personal ethics affects the competence of

healthcare providers in carrying out a DNR order. The researcher aims to investigate how nurses

and other healthcare providers like midwives understand the concept of ethical competence in

order to make, or be involved in DNR decisions and how such skills can be learned and

developed. A further aim was to promote a further study of the argument for a more thorough

and in-depth research. The simple phenomenological qualitative study was conducted in a

hospital within the locality of Magsingal, Ilocos Sur where the researcher resides. Seven nurses

and 2 midwives and 2 nursing attendants participated. Informal interviews were conducted with

nurses and other health care workers who work in the hospital where terminally-ill patients are

being catered in daily basisThe main topics of the interviews that are presented in this paper are

their understanding of ethical competence and the need for ethical competence in DNR

decisions. The results were recorded, noted and decoded. As a nurse who has worked in the same

specialty as the respondents, the interviewer was aware that his pre-understanding could be a

bias. This awareness enhanced conformability. The credibility was further strengthened by the

fact that all participants cooperated on the analysis process, through identifying and formulating

the theme, categories and subcategories. 

The analysis resulted in an overall theme, related to the aim and the interview

questions: Ethical competence in relation to DNR decisions. Under this theme, several

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subcategories were grouped together into three categories: Understandings of ethical competence

and learning and developing ethical competence.

Figure 1.0: Description of theme, categories and subcategories.

The respondents’ understandings of ethical competence resulted in two

subcategories. Applying knowledge describes the importance of formal medical knowledge

related to the context, as well as ethical competence comprising the ability to apply ethical

models, to weigh ethical values against each other and to be aware of different perspectives in a

situation. The Individual virtues subcategory highlights the respondents’ views of the importance

of individual character traits in the caregiver. Several respondents emphasized that ethical

competence was always necessary in their work, not only in DNR or other decisions concerning

prolonging life or not. However, most nurses expressed that medical knowledge was a

prerequisite for ethical competence regarding DNR decisions. Without thorough knowledge

about the patients’ diseases and conditions, the health care provider might be incapable of

making the right ethical decisions, as these must be based on correct medical judgements.
ETHICAL COMPETENCE IN “DO NOT RESUSCITATE (DNR)” ORDER: WHAT
AFFECTS THE ETHICAL COMPETENCE OF HEALTHCARE PROVIDERS IN CARING
FOR TERMINALLY-ILL CLIENTS IN DNR ORDER? 7

(“Basically, sa tingin ko kailangan natin ng formal knowledge kasi ito ang foundation para

makagawa tayo ng decision sa pag-aalaga sa pasyente natin”. - Nurse #4). All respondents,

both nurses and midwives, mentioned several aspects of ethical competence which they regarded

as necessary for making or participating in DNR decisions. (“Masapol tayo talaga iti ethics ken

skills ... Masapol interesado tayo ken jay tao nga kasangsango tayo tapno maawatan tayo jay

kasasaad na. Ken masapol tayo haan lang nga skills competence ngem pati ethical

competence ... Anya iti kayam nga aramiden para ken jay pasyentem, parte metlang ti ethics

dayta. Kayam ti agdecision nga haan ka nga ag rarely iti inbaga iti libro” - The participants).

The respondents also mentioned the importance of knowledge about ethics and the ability to

identify value conflicts as a part of ethical competence. Some of the ethical values the

respondents mentioned were primarily directed at the patient, such as providing the best possible

care to the right patient; seeing and understanding the person as well as the patient; and

respecting patient integrity. They also mentioned the importance of seeing patients as the

different individuals they are. (“Respect ... nga amin nga pasyente ket agsasabali katatao da

uray agpapada da iti kaso ... agsasabali ti kababalin iti kada tao. Mabalin nga jay aramidem

ken jay maysa nga pasyente ket haan nga ethically right para ken jay maysa.” - Nurse # 2).

Other aspects mentioned as components of ethical competence were knowledge of ethical

theories and principles, such as utilitarianism and the principle of human dignity. Some

respondents described ethical competence as the ability to weigh ethical values against each

other, like weighing patient autonomy against not causing harm, or patient autonomy versus

doing good, and non-maleficence versus beneficence.(“Anya kadi ti ar aramidek ken apay nga

ar aramidek daytoy nga banag? Mayat kaid daytoy wenno madi ken jay pasyente? Dakdakkel

kadi ti pagsayaatan na wenno kumaro?” Midwive # 1). (“Parparigatek kadi lalo ti kasasaad ti
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pasyente, dagijay nga banag. Ti turay ti pasyente para iti bagbagi na, dagiti kabagyan na ken iti

decision na iti biag na… dagita ti maysa nga mangparigat ti panagdesisyon nu add aka iti kasta

nga sitwasyon.” - Nurse #3).

In addition to referring to ethical competence as knowledge of ethics, the respondents

also referred to ethical competence as characteristics in the individual caregiver. In line with the

theoretical perspective described above, this could be described as a form of virtue ethics. The

respondents expressed how virtues could make the caregiver a better person and also a better

physician or nurse. The virtues were described as character traits, such as empathy, respect,

compassion, openness, courage and humbleness. A virtue such as humbleness could also

describe the respondents’ attitude toward their own ability to handle difficult situations. Some

physicians expressed humbleness with regard to being the one who made the decision. (“Respect

and humbleness. And knowledge. Dapat kitaem jay patient as a person, as a whole. Ken dapat

down to earth humbleness ti amin nga decision nga aramidem.” – Midwife #1). (“Dapat adda

compassion mo iti amin nga tao, sapasap ...” – NA #1). The respondents also expressed the need

for the ability to act in a good and virtuous way, for example, to be caring and to show empathy.

(“Dapat ket sensitive ka in a positive way. Ken ikkam ti impression jay pasyentem ken jay

significant others na nga ag care ka talaga. Para kanyak dayjay ti importante.” – Nurse # 1. The

ability to understand the situation was also mentioned as a quality, as were other skills, such as

being able to communicate well and to shift your perspective.(“Kalsa jay ibagbaga iti

Foundations in Nursing Practice, Empathy. Ipan mo iti bagim iti sitwasyon iti pasyente ken iti

kabagyan na, dima nga maawatan ti amin.” – Nurse # 3.) On other point, the second main

category, Learning and developing ethical competence, was divided into four

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subcategories: Education and courses, Experience, Self-reflection and Working climate. The

main part of theoretical education in ethics was provided during the healthcare providers’

training. Some nurses expressed a need for more ethics classes during their education in order to

better prepare the students for clinical practice. (“Adda opportunity tayo amin nga agseryoso ti

agadal idi agbasbasa tay paylang. Ngem haan ka met hands on; sam to metlang maawatanen

inton add aka mismon iti sitwasyon.” - Nurse #3). Several respondents also expressed that ethics

cannot only be taught theoretically, and that education does not make difficult situations easier to

handle. They expressed that the best way to learn and develop ethical competence was by being

supervised by an experienced colleague, and to learn by participating when that individual made

decisions. The experienced colleague could thereby function as a role model.(“Masapol

mapadasam, makiparticipate ka, tapno haan nga kasla ammom lattan bigla bigla ... Dapat parte

ka iti team- iti decision making process. Agadal ka kadagiti senior mo, isuda ket ado pasadas

dan.” - NA # 1). Questioning oneself and one’s decisions in self-reflection was also considered a

way to improve ethical competence, according to the respondents. Several nurses described their

efforts to reflect on their decisions, to have a discussion with themselves on what to do and why,

how their decisions might be perceived by others, and how they might affect others. Self-

reflection also required the virtue of courage, which was needed to raise the question of DNR

decisions, as well as the courage to admit to making less successful decisions. (“Raise the issues,

dapat ipakaammom, agpapatang kayo tapno makadecide kayo, amoen yo nu usto wenno saan ti

ubraen yo, ken dapat ready kayo nga awaten ti consequences iti decision nga aramiden yo.” -

Nurse #4). Furthermore, several respondents mentioned the importance of a good working

climate or environment for ethical discussions. ( “Dapat jay working environment ket conducive

for easier decision making.” Nurse # 2).

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In summary, the simple study wanted to investigate how nurses and and other healthcare

professionals in the care of terminally-ill patients understood the concept of ethical

competence in relation to DNR decisions and how such competence can be learned and

developed. The results showed that all healthcare providers, the nurse, midwives and nursing

attendants were able to reflect on their ethical competence in relation to DNR decisions, as well

as on what it should comprise. If seen through the lens of the background of this paper, the

ethical competence described by the respondents can be understood in light of the

concepts being, doing and knowing. Several nurses in this study mentioned the necessity of

medical competence in order to have ethical competence. Without medical knowledge of

relevant diseases, it was not considered possible to make an informed decision about DNR. In

line with other researches, Falkenström et al. (2014) found that a contextual understanding is

important for being able to handle ethical conflicts. The same source proved that the experience

in a profession is a prerequisite for ethical competence. Furthermore, the same source

emphasizes that it is important for nurses to have knowledge of pathophysiology and medical

and nursing interventions in order to make good ethical or medical decisions. This might

represent the medical knowledge that, according to the respondents in this study, is a necessary

aspect of ethical competence. Nurses did not mention medical knowledge to the same extent,

which can be related to their different work tasks. They are not responsible for making DNR

decisions, but rather to provide good holistic care to the patients. Moreover, the participants in

the present study also mentioned some virtues when asked about the content of ethical

competence. Eriksson (2014) refer to this part of ethical competence as being – having good

character, being an ethical person. His studies have investigated what kind of virtues a good

nurse or a good healthcare provider should. He proposed that some of the virtues are related to
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the caregivers’ relationship to the patient, for example kindness, empathy and compassion.

Others can be seen as a form of help for the caregiver. He explains the need for a nurse to have

enough courage to do what the practice defines as good – with the risk of physical harm, injury

or contagion, to stand up for good care against organizations and to sometimes delay things in

order to be able to support patients and families. Several respondents in this study also

emphasized the need for knowledge about ethical theories and principles. Still, Eriksson (2014)

refer to this part of ethical competence as knowing – to have knowledge of ethical theories, and

of relevant ethical guidelines. Some of the nurses could use ethical language to refer to some

principles and models, using the common descriptions and names. The nurses did not describe

the ethical models and principles using “ethical language” to the same extent as the physicians,

but did talk about how they acted on them. Lastly, the respondents in this study used their

knowledge of ethics to manage more or less severe ethical dilemmas throughout their work days.

The healthcare providers made choices in treatment together with colleagues and or patients and

relatives. They decided to inform or not inform patients and relatives about the DNR decision.

They weighed ethical principles against each other to find the right decision for the individual

patient. Eriksson (2014) refer to this component of ethical competence as doing – to use ethics as

a guide for how to act in the best way. Overall, several respondents in this study expressed

knowledge of ethical theories and principles, and also described the virtues a nurse or any

healthcare provider needed to possess in order to make or be part of decisions on DNR in

termianl care. They weighed ethical principles against each other, with the patients’ best interest

in focus. When they withheld information, they did so after thorough ethical consideration and

with the intention to not cause harm.

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The foundation of ethical competence is laid in the formal education of healthcare

providers, and is then further developed and consolidated in clinical practice. However,

opportunities for reflection are also needed. Therefore, continued ethical education and

discussions for the further development of a common ethical language are crucial. Thus, hospital

administrators are responsible for providing a good ethical working climate that can increase

ethical competence. In such dialogues, ethical guidelines could be raised and discussed, in order

to make different staff categories more familiar with them and make them more aware of how

they should be handled in complicated ethical dilemmas. Enhancement of ethical competence

will help improve cooperation between all allied health personnel regarding patients and DNR

decisions, in their efforts to act in the best interest of the patient. In order to make ethically sound

DNR decisions in terminal care, healthcare providers need all three aspects of ethical

competence previously identified: being, doing and knowing. Hence, they need to develop

appropriate virtues and improve their knowledge of ethical theories and relevant clinical

guidelines. Furthermore, well-developed ethical competence includes the ability to act upon the

ethical judgements you have made. The respondents in this study reflected ethically on their

work, and if they deviated from guidelines in relation to DNR decisions, they did so after

thorough ethical consideration. However, they also described how the workplace needed to

create opportunities for reflection on and discussion of ethics in end of life care in terminally-ill

patients, in order to keep contextual ethical competence on a high level.

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