Problem
A. Does your hospital or place of employment have a formal Ethics Committee? If your answer is yes, proceed to question #2. If your answer is no, identify what process or chain of command would be used to establish an Ethics Committee. Who would be the members of the Committee? In addition, if your answer to this question is "no", what is the current policy of your institution if an ethical dilemma should arise with patients and/or families?
B. What is the function of the hospital Ethics Committee?
C. Who is assigned to represent the Committee? In other words, identify the members by title only; but be specific as to the unit or area of practice of each member (do not use names of members).
D. Is this a volunteer Committee? Who are the assigned Committee Members? How long of a term do members typically serve? Do nurses serve on this committee? How many nurses?
E. How would a nurse become a member of the Committee?
F. How often does the Committee meet? Be specific.
G. Provide a reason for consulting or referring a patient or family member to the Ethics Committee.
H. How would you access the Ethics Committee if needed?