Adherence to Nursing Ethical Principles: Perspectives of Nurses and Patients in Dialysis Departments of Ahvaz: A Cross-Sectional Study

Background: The critical nursing care for hemodialysis patients is one of the most effective factors to achieve promising results. Therefore, the aim of the current study was to comparison the perspectives of nurses and patients in dialysis departments. Methods: A total of 225 participants were involved, comprising 80 nurses working in hemodialysis wards and 145 patients receiving hemodialysis treatment. Data collection was carried out through a questionnaire, and ANOVA was used for data analysis through SPSS. Results: The demographic analysis indicated that the predominant patients were male individuals aged between 20 and 70, with the majority holding a diploma as their highest level of education. In contrast, the nursing staff was primarily female, and their educational qualifications were notably significant. The average score and standard deviation for the total consideration of nursing ethical principles among the hemodialysis patients and nurses were recorded at 5.32 and 0.25, respectively, compared to 6.04 and 0.31 for the nurses. Furthermore, both groups exhibited significantly higher scores in the areas of professional skill and respect when in comparison to other evaluated items. Conclusion: According to the obtained results, consideration of the nursing ethical principles is necessary to improve the patients’ health condition in critical care wards. Additional investigations are required to develop and standardize assessment tools for evaluating nurses’ professional ethical practices in alignment with the ethical codes applicable to nurses in Iran.