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Nursing Ethics
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Two Women with Multiple Sclerosis and Their Caregivers: conflicting normative expectations

Tineke A Abma

University of Maastricht, The Netherlands, T.abma{at}ZW.UNIMAAS.nl

Barth Oeseburg

University of Groningen, The Netherlands

Guy AM Widdershoven

University of Maastricht, The Netherlands

Minke Goldsteen

University of Maastricht, The Netherlands

Marian A Verkerk

University of Groningen, The Netherlands

It is not uncommon that nurses are unable to meet the normative expectations of chronically ill patients. The purpose of this article is to describe and illustrate Walker’s expressive-collaborative view of morality to interpret the normative expectations of two women with multiple sclerosis. Both women present themselves as autonomous persons who make their own choices, but who also have to rely on others for many aspects of their lives, for example, to find a new balance between work and social contacts or to find work. We show that their narratives of identity, relationship and value differ from the narratives that others use to understand and identify them. Since identities, relationships and values give rise to normative expectations, in both cases there is a conflict between what the women expect of their caregivers and vice-versa. The narratives also show that two similar persons with multiple sclerosis may need very different care. This implies that nurses caring for such persons should listen carefully to their stories and reflect on their own perceptions of self.

Key Words: autonomy • multiple sclerosis • narratives • normative expectations • responsibility

Nursing Ethics, Vol. 12, No. 5, 479-492 (2005)
DOI: 10.1191/0969733005ne816oa
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 Nurs EthicsHome page
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Uncovering the Ethics of Suffering Using a Narrative Approach
Nursing Ethics, January 1, 2008; 15(1): 62 - 72.
[Abstract] [PDF]