The Code consists of two components - nine provisions and the
accompanying interpretive statements - and serves to: Provide a succinct
statement of the ethical obligations and duties of every individual who
enters the nursing profession. Serve as the profession's nonnegotiable
ethical standard. Express a nursing's own understanding of its
commitment to society. The Code is particularly useful to in today's
health care environment because it reiterates the fundamental values and
commitments of the nurse (Provisions 1-3), identifies the boundaries of
duty and loyalty (Provisions 4-6), and describes the duties of the nurse
that extend beyond individual patient encounters (Provisions 7-9). This
revision retains interpretive statements, for each provision, that
provide more specific guidance for practice. The statements are
responsive to the contemporary context of nursing and recognize the
larger scope of nursing's concern in relation to health. It also
includes another innovation: links to foundational and supplemental
documents. ANA's Code of Ethics for Nurses is the promise that nurses
are doing their best to provide care for their patients and their
communities and are supporting each other in the process so that all
nurses can fulfill their ethical and professional obligations. It is
important tool that can be used now as leverage to a better future for
nurses, patients and health care. This Code of Ethics for Nurses with
Interpretive Statements is a reflection of the proud ethical heritage of
nursing, a guide for all nurses now and into the future.
