Veracity- Obligation to tell the truth.

- “ don’t lie, giving false results.”

- Health care providers obliged to be honest with clients.
- The right to self-determination becomes meaningless if the client does not receive accurate,
unbiased, and understandable information.

Veracity requires nurses to be truthful. Truth is fundamental to building a trusting relationship.

Intentionally deceiving or misleading a client is a violation of this principle. Deliberately
omitting a part of the truth is deception and violates the principle of veracity. This principle often
creates ethical dilemmas. When is it all right to lie? Some ethicists believe it is never appropriate
to deceive another individual. Others think that if another ethical principle overrides veracity,
then lying is permissible.

Consider this example:

Ms. Allen has just been told that her father has Alzheimer’s disease. The nurse practitioner
wants to come into the home to discuss treatment. Ms. Allen refuses, saying that the nurse
practitioner should under no circumstances tell her father the diagnosis. She explains to the
practitioner that she is sure he will kill himself if he learns that he has Alzheimer’s disease. She
bases this concern on statements he has made regarding this disease.

The nurse practitioner replies that a medication is available that might help her father. However,
it is available only through a research study being conducted at a nearby university. To
participate in the research, the client must be informed of the purpose of the study, the
medication to be given, its side effects, and follow up procedures. Ms. Allen
continues to refuse to allow her father to be told his diagnosis because she is positive he will
commit suicide.

The nurse practitioner faces a dilemma: does he abide by Ms. Allen’s wishes based on the
principle of beneficence, or does he abide by the principle of veracity and inform his client of the
diagnosis. What would you do?

Confidentiality- Confidentiality comes from Latin fide: trust; Feeling with trust.

Confidentiality is the ethical principle that requires non-disclosure of private or secret

information with which one is interested.

Example: “Don’t tell anyone about patient’s chart or secrets.”

- confide as to “show trust by imparting secrets”; “tell in assurance of secrecy”; “entrust; commit
to the charge, knowledge or good faith of another”; while

- confidential or in confidence is “a secret or private matter not to be divulged to others”

Confidentiality in the health care context is the requirement of health professionals (HPs) to keep
information obtained in the course of their work private.

Professional codes of ethics (and conduct) will often have statements about professions
maintaining confidentiality, but confidentiality is often qualified. Confidentiality is non-
disclosure of private or secret information with which one is entrusted. Legally, this requirement
applies to HPs and others, who have access to information about patients, and continues after the
patient’s death.

Nurses hold in confidence any information obtained in a professional capacity, and use
professional judgment in sharing such information. Each nurse will treat as confidential personal
information obtained in a professional capacity.

The nurse uses professional judgment regarding the necessity to disclose particular details,
giving due consideration to the interests, well-being and safety of the patient and recognizing
that the nurse is required by law to disclose certain information.