BACKGROUND: The ethics and human rights issues experienced by psychiatric-mental health and substance-abuse registered nurses (P-MH and SA RNs) and how disturbed they are by the issues are not known. OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to identify the frequency of ethics and human rights issues experienced by P-MH and SA RNs and how disturbing the issues are to them. STUDY DESIGN: Using Dillman's (1978) Total Design Method, a survey of more than 8,000 RNs in six New England states was conducted. From the final sample size of 2,090 New England RN participants, responses from 162 participants who identified themselves as P-MH(n = 145) or SA (n = 17) RNs were further analyzed using descriptive statistics. RESULTS: Protecting patients' rights and human dignity and providing nursing care with possible health risks to the RN were identified as the most frequently experienced ethics and human rights issues. Staffing patterns that limit patient access to nursing care and implementing managed care policies that threaten the quality of patient care were identified as the most disturbing issues. Forty-one percent of the RNs reported experiencing ethics and human rights issues daily or one to four times per week in their clinical practices. CONCLUSIONS: P-MH and SA RNs in New England encounter ethics and human rights issues in practice more frequently than all other RNs practicing in New England
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