Basic Nursing 1st Edition by Judith Wilkinson, Leslie Treas

Exercise 11

Patient Situation
Matthew has been admitted to the emergency department with extensive wounds to both forearms, including tendon and vascular damage, from a suicide attempt. Matthew seems very quiet, almost withdrawn, and answers most of your questions in monosyllables.
Matthew reports the following: He is the third child in a family of five. Matthew's middle-class parents are now retired, and his brothers and sisters are scattered across the country in various large cities. Although Matthew claims his schooling years were unremarkable, he recalls several occasions when he was bullied and physically beaten by gangs of older adolescents.
Matthew further states that he graduated from Harvard Law School and became vice president of an influential law firm. Despite his apparent success in life, he has continually questioned his self-worth since childhood. Plagued by worries and depression that have increased over the past few years, he says he wrote a note indicating that he now realizes what a failure he is and proceeded to slash both of his forearms with a sharp razor.
Matthew reports that he has not been eating much, feels tired all the time, and has no interest in going outside the house. He says, "I just don't feel like doing anything; I just want to sleep all the time."
Caring
Ethical Knowledge: Try to put aside your own beliefs now, and answer the following questions from the perspective of (a) Matthew and (b) give one of your nursing colleagues on the unit.
a. Give one reason to support Matthew's claim that he has a right to commit suicide if his despair is too deep to bear.
b. Give one reason to support a colleague's claim that he does not have a right to commit suicide, no matter how he feels.