Analyse the legal, ethical and professional concepts underpinning safe and effective person-centred care in relation to adult nursing based on the following fictional scenario. Alice is an 82-year-old lady who has been admitted to a general medical ward after she collapsed at home. She has been found to have a urinary tract infection (UTI) as well as being dehydration with an acute kidney injury (AKI). Since being on the ward Alice has been a little “muddled” at times. She is getting peoples names mixed up and is often unsure of where she is and what is going on.
During the lunchtime medication period the nurse, Daisy, and her student nurse, Adam, come into the bay of patients to administer medication. They draw the curtains around Alice’s bed and loudly discuss her diagnosis and past medical history. They see that she has a bit of a high
temperature and can also see that she is prescribed paracetamol. They dispense this into a medicines pot and sign the drug chart. They then give the paracetamol to Alice, but she refuses the medication as she is not in pain. Adam tells her that it is not for pain but for her high temperature and
she will feel unwell if she doesn’t take it. Alice states that she does not feel unwell and still refuses to take it. The nurse, Daisy, rolls her eyes and asks Adam to follow her outside of the curtain.
Outside of the curtain, Adam asks the nurse whether they need to change the drug chart to show that she has refused. Daisy tells him that this is not necessary, and that Alice is confused and needs to take the paracetamol. She asks Adam to take the paracetamol tablets, crush them up and
add them to her dinner. Alice hears this and considers refusing her dinner but is worried that this is the only food she will get and will go hungry if she complains.