| Course | NR 395 Ethics, Integrity, and Professional Nursing Trends |
|---|---|
| Week | 1 |
| Paper type | Discussion post with one reply |
| Length | About 530 words |
| Format | Discussion post with APA 7 citations |
| School | Chamberlain University |
| Program | RN-to-BSN |
| Updated | October 2026 |
Free sample paper for NR 395 Week 1
Week 1 Discussion: Where Do You Stand?
A Late Dose Nobody Noticed: Why I Would Tell the Patient Even When the Charge Nurse Says It Did No Harm
Initial Post
My position: a nurse should tell a patient about a medication error in their care even when it caused no harm and even when the charge nurse suggests it is not worth mentioning.
The situation I have in mind is small enough to be true. On a medical-surgical unit, a 66-year-old man's 0900 metoprolol is given at 1200 because it was missed in a busy morning. His heart rate and blood pressure stay normal all day. The incident report is filed. The charge nurse says there is no need to tell him, because nothing happened and it would only worry him. At 1300 he asks why his pill came so late.
The strongest objection deserves its full weight. Disclosing a harmless error can frighten a patient, damage his trust in a team that is otherwise caring for him well, and take time from nurses who are already short of it. If every late dose were announced, patients might hear about errors all day and conclude that the unit is unsafe when it is not. That is a real cost, and I do not think it is trivial.
I still come down on the side of telling him, for a reason in the Code of Ethics for Nurses. Provision 3 says that the nurse establishes a trusting relationship and advocates for the rights, health and safety of recipients of nursing care (American Nurses Association [ANA], 2025). Trust built on not being told is fragile. He has already noticed the late dose and asked about it. If I answer vaguely and he later learns it was a miss, the damage to trust is worse than a plain answer now: "Your 9 o'clock pill was given at noon because it was missed this morning. Your heart rate and pressure have stayed normal, and we've reported it so we can find out how it happened." That is honest, short and does not frighten.
I would limit my position in one way. Telling him does not mean telling him everything about how the unit works or whose fault it was. It means answering truthfully when the error is in his care, and not letting silence become the default because nothing went wrong this time.
My question for the group: would your answer change if he had not noticed? I think mine would hold, but I am less sure, and I would like to hear the case for staying quiet from someone who holds it.
Reply to a Classmate
Jasmine, you argued that nurses should always follow the charge nurse's direction on disclosure, because the charge nurse sees the whole unit. I agree that the charge nurse has information I lack. But I think the Code puts the commitment to the patient first, in Provision 2, before loyalty to the chain of command. Could there be a middle path in your scenario, such as asking the charge nurse to come with you to tell the patient, rather than choosing between obeying and going around her?
References
American Nurses Association. (2025). Code of ethics for nurses. https://codeofethics.ana.org/
Reading the NR 395 Week 1 instructions
The opening NR 395 forum wants a clear position on an ethical question in nursing, defended with the Code of Ethics. Students are usually asked to state their stance, describe a practice situation, consider an opposing view, cite a provision and respond to a peer. Take a side in your first sentence. Use a situation small enough to be true, with details a nurse would recognize. Give the strongest objection its real strength before answering it. Use one provision of the code as the reason, not as decoration. Limit your position so it does not overreach. Pose a question to the group that could change your mind, and reply with an option your classmate had not considered.
Inside the NR 395 Week 1 example
The post opens with its position on disclosing an error even when no harm followed. The second paragraph sets the scene on a medical-surgical unit: the missed morning dose, the late administration and stable heart rate and pressure. The third gives the objection in full, that telling him could frighten him, damage his trust in a team caring for him well and take time from busy nurses. The fourth answers with Provision 3 on the trusting relationship and advocacy for the patient's rights. The fifth limits disclosure to answering truthfully about the error in his care without assigning blame. The question asks whether the answer holds if he had not noticed. The reply to Jasmine offers a third option based on another provision.
Reading the NR 395 Week 1 grading rubric
NR 395 discussion grading generally looks at a clear position, quality of ethical reasoning, application of the Code of Ethics, engagement with opposing views, the peer reply and APA, and on-time posting is part of the grade. Ethical reasoning outweighs the other rows, and the post earns it by stating the objection fully before answering. The position row is credited because the stance appears in the first sentence. Code application scores when Provision 3 is used as the reason for disclosure, not quoted for show. The limit on the position shows judgment graders reward. The peer reply earns its points by adding a third option grounded in a different provision rather than agreeing. A correct reference to the 2025 Code completes the APA row.
NR 395 Week 1 help: mistakes that cost points
The most expensive first ethics post agrees with everyone, endorsing honesty, dignity and advocacy in terms no one could contest. Another common loss is a situation so dramatic, such as a death, that the ethics are obvious. Students also mention the opposing view in one line and move on, or quote a provision without saying how it decides the case. Posts without a clear side are hard to grade. Replies that only affirm the classmate earn little. A workplace case is fine with names and dates altered. If there is an ethical question from practice that you keep thinking about, tell us your side and an NR 395 Week 1 post can be argued around it.
Get a NR 395 Week 1 example written to your instructions
Send us the discussion prompt for your section, the rubric if your classroom posts one, and the position you are leaning toward. We write a custom example against your instructions and return it inside 24-48h. The first one is free, and it comes back as a finished post you can read against your own draft.
More NR 395 papers and RN-to-BSN samples
- NR 395 Week 2: Ethics Case Analysis
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- NR 395 Week 5: Ethical Framework Analysis
- NR 395 Week 6: Trend Analysis
- NR 395 Week 7: Professional Issue Analysis
- NR 395 Week 8: Reflection
- NR 436 Week 1: Discussion Post
- NR 394 Week 1: Cultural Misreading Discussion Post
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- NR 393 Week 1: History of a Nursing Practice Post
NR 395 Week 1 questions, answered
Does an opening post have to take a side this early?
In most sections the rubric rewards a stated position over a survey of views, and Week 1 is where the habit gets set. A finished example commits in the first line and spends the rest of the post earning that commitment. Hedging reads as unfinished thinking, and it leaves classmates nothing to reply to.
Can I use a case from my own workplace?
Commonly yes, and it usually produces a stronger post than an invented scenario. The patient stays unidentifiable: no name, no employer, no date, and no combination of details that would let a colleague recognize the person. Strip anything the argument does not need. What you keep is the decision and the pressure around it, which is the part being graded.
How much of the nursing code should appear in the post?
Less than most drafts include. One provision, used where the argument actually turns on it, does more than three quoted in a row. The grader is checking whether the code changed what you concluded, not whether you located it. A post that would read identically with the citations removed has treated the code as decoration.
Where can I find a free NR 395 Week 1 sample paper?
The complete Week 1 post arguing for disclosure of a harmless late dose, with the objection, the Code of Ethics provision, the limit, the reply and the reference, can be read on this page.
Which provision does the NR 395 Week 1 post use to support disclosure?
Provision 3 of the ANA Code of Ethics, which asks nurses to build a trusting relationship and advocate for the patient's rights, health and safety.