Dinner Discussion about Pediatric Nursing Ethics: What do you do when parents are 'wrong'?
In Person
Parental decision-making can be challenging at the best of times. When a child is ill and in the hospital, decisions take on a different urgency, a different weight. Healthcare professionals ask parents to make grueling decisions which can have life-altering consequences for both the child and their family. What is a healthcare provider to do when they believe the parents have made the wrong choice?
During this discussion we will explore the basics of pediatric ethics, ethical frameworks that serve as a guide for healthcare workers caring for children, and the importance of moral intuition when these dilemmas arise.
Mary Brennan '15, DNP, CPNP-PC, MBE, is a pediatric nurse practitioner in the Cerebral Palsy Center at Boston Children’s Hospital. She earned her bachelor’s degree from Saint Anselm College, a Master’s degree in Biomedical Ethics from Harvard Medical School, and a Doctor of Nursing Practice degree from Boston College.
Mary's professional career has focused on caring for critically ill children and their families in pediatric intensive care units. Her professional and scholarly interests include pediatric ethics, disability ethics, and shared decision-making in the context of life-limiting childhood illnesses.