Full Answer Section

Consequences:

1. Academic Disciplinary Actions: The most immediate and direct consequences are academic penalties imposed by the university. These institutions maintain strict academic integrity policies.
   • Example (Plagiarism): A Master’s student submits a research proposal or a literature review for a course in their nursing Master’s program. They copy and paste substantial sections of text from online journals, textbooks, or even other students’ previous work without proper citation or paraphrasing, presenting it as their own original thought.
     • Specific Consequences: The university would likely initiate disciplinary proceedings. This could result in a failing grade for the specific assignment, a failing grade for the entire course, suspension from the program for a semester or year, or in severe or repeat cases, outright expulsion from the Master’s program. This not only wastes significant tuition fees and time but also leaves a permanent mark on their academic transcript, making future educational or professional pursuits extremely difficult. The act itself also demonstrates a fundamental misunderstanding or disregard for academic rigor and the principles of evidence-based practice, both critical for advanced nursing roles.
2. Damage to Professional Reputation and Future Opportunities: Unethical behavior in academia can extend beyond university walls and impact a student’s standing within the broader nursing community.
   • Consequences: Information about academic misconduct can become known within professional circles. This can significantly hinder opportunities for internships, scholarships, mentorships, and highly competitive job placements, especially for advanced roles that often require academic excellence and a clean record. Nursing is a relatively close-knit profession, and ethical lapses can precede a student’s entry into the workforce, making it challenging to build a reputable career.
3. Jeopardy of Licensure and Certification: Nursing regulatory bodies, such as the Nursing Council of Kenya (NCK) or state Boards of Nursing in other countries, conduct thorough background checks before granting licenses or advanced practice certifications.
   • Consequences: Significant academic misconduct, particularly if it led to suspension or expulsion, can be reported to these regulatory bodies. They may view such ethical lapses as a serious character flaw inconsistent with the responsibilities of a registered or advanced practice nurse. This could lead to a delay in obtaining licensure, requiring additional ethical training, or even outright denial of the license or certification, effectively barring the individual from practicing nursing.

Consequences of Unethical Behavior in Nursing Practice

Unethical behavior in nursing practice has direct and often immediate implications for patient safety, public trust, and the legal and professional standing of the nurse and the healthcare institution. The stakes are profoundly higher, as these actions can directly lead to patient harm, legal repercussions, and severe professional penalties.

Consequences:

1. Direct Patient Harm and Jeopardized Patient Safety: This is the most critical and devastating consequence. Unethical actions can directly lead to adverse patient outcomes, injury, or even death.
   • Example: A Master’s-prepared nurse, now working as a Clinical Officer or Nurse Practitioner in a busy clinic in Kisumu, is responsible for patient assessments and prescribing. Feeling overwhelmed by workload or lack of knowledge, the nurse makes up vital signs or assessment findings in a patient’s chart without actually conducting them, or prescribes a medication incorrectly by “guessing” a dosage rather than consulting guidelines.
     • Specific Consequences: Falsifying vital signs means a deteriorating patient (e.g., with sepsis or hemorrhage) might not be recognized in time, delaying life-saving interventions and leading to critical illness or death. Incorrect medication prescription could cause severe adverse drug reactions, drug overdose, or a lack of therapeutic effect, harming the patient. This unethical behavior, stemming from a lack of integrity and diligence, directly compromises patient safety and violates the fundamental principle of “do no harm.” The patient suffers significant physical or psychological damage, prolonging their illness or even causing irreversible harm.
2. Erosion of Public Trust and Professional Credibility: The public places immense trust in nurses to act as their advocates and provide safe, compassionate care. Unethical actions shatter this fundamental trust.
   • Consequences: Incidents of professional misconduct, especially those involving patient harm, exploitation, or dishonesty, can severely damage the reputation of the individual nurse, the healthcare facility (e.g., Kisumu County Referral Hospital), and the entire nursing profession in Kenya. This can lead to a decline in public confidence in the healthcare system, discouraging people from seeking necessary care.
3. Disciplinary Action by Regulatory Bodies: National nursing councils are mandated to protect the public by regulating nursing practice.
   • Consequences: Unethical conduct is reported to the relevant regulatory body (like the NCK). Disciplinary actions can range from formal reprimands, mandatory retraining in ethics or specific clinical areas, fines, probation, suspension of the nursing license for a period, or, in severe cases, permanent revocation of the nursing license. A revoked license means the nurse can no longer legally practice nursing, effectively ending their career.