Nurses' opinions on do-not-resuscitate orders

Abstract

The aim of this study was to determine nurses' opinions on Do Not Resuscitate (DNR) orders. This is a descriptive study. A total of 1250 nurses participated in this study. The mean age of participants was 34.5 +/- 7.7 years; 92.6% were women; 56.4% had bachelor's degrees, and 28.8% were intensive care, oncology, or palliative care nurses. Most participants (94.3%) agreed that healthcare professionals involved in DNR decision-making processes should have ethical competence, while they were mostly undecided (43%) about the statement whether or not DNR should be legal. More than half the participants (60.2%) disagreed with the idea that DNR implementation causes an ethical dilemma. Participants' opinions on DNR decisions significantly differed according to the number of years of employment and unit of duty. The results showed that most of the nurses had positive attitudes towards DNR orders despite it being illegal. Future studies are needed to better understand family members' and decision makers' perceptions of DNR orders for patients.