The present study was conducted with the objective of reflecting on ethics conferences introduced in maternal nursing practicums and elucidating the significance of ethics conferences in nursing practicums. The records of ethics conferences held for nine groups（82 students）of maternal nursing practicums between September 2014 and February 2015 were analyzed in a qualitative and descriptive manner by three faculty members in charge of maternal nursing. The present study was conducted with the approval of the ethics committee of the researchers’ affiliated university. Based on the results, the following four items were identified as the significance of ethics conferences: 1）Nurtures the ability of students to consider the skepticism and ethical dilemmas they face in terms of the subject’s rights and professional ethics, 2）Nurtures the ability to think about ethics according to the situation, and 3）Promotes the diversity of the students’ ethical behavior through accumulation of ethics conferences that consider the ethical characteristics of the various nursing fields.

The aim of this study is to examine the contents of telephone consultation for the post-discharged patients with postoperative gynecological cancers from the ethical point of view. From this doing, we could learn nursing practices with life support for cancer patients. Lymphedemas are the most serious risks for such patients and it is critical to prevent the onset by self-management（SM）. However, learning the methods of SM is difficult considering the short period of hospitalization. To improve on this we conducted telephone consultations with 55 female homecare patients, aged between 20 and to above 70 years of age, to assist and improve the SM skills. The telephone consultations with each participant took place once a month for six months with semi-structured questionnaires. A narrative analysis of the consultations was performed for a qualitative approach. As a result, the narratives were classified into three categories: 1）general post-operation issues, 2）private matters, and 3）requests for advice. For the private matters, some are related to issues of sexuality. For 1）and 3）, post-operation and advice requests, the most serious concerns are issues of reinforcement of support for the discharged patients. It is necessary to be aware of patients with gynecological cancers as having specific ethical issues and their wishes to have access to an ethically sensitive support arrangement.

The present study involved patients with advanced pulmonary cancer, and aimed to identify factors influencing their decision-making in relation to discharge from hospital, and discuss appropriate support required for their decision-making. Interviews with ten subjects were conducted using a semi-structured questionnaire, and the results were analyzed qualitatively and inductively. In relation to support for discharge from hospital, the following eight factors influencing their decision-making were identified: 【thoughts on lifestyles】, 【the wish to continue their lifestyles】, 【the wish to receive treatment to live a long time】, 【difficulty leading a daily life】, 【adequate support provided by family members】, 【the effects of treatment】, 【appropriateness of information】, 【orientation conducted by health care professionals in relation to treatment】．From these results, it was suggested that nursing care to support patients’ decision-making included to: help patients live as themselves, improve their daily lives, coordinate support provided by family members, obtain appropriate information, and enhance their motivation to continue to receive treatment.

The goal of the present study was to elucidate the types of everyday ethics that sustain the eliminative behavior support provided by nurses. Seventeen nurses working at a general hospital participated in the present study. After participant observation, data were collected through semi-structured interviews and then qualitatively and inductively analyzed. Eliminative behavior support performed by nurses from the perspective of everyday ethics fell into six categories: “Elimination is normal for humans,” “Elimination should be done where it is desired, by oneself, at one’s own pace, to completion,” “It is surely unpleasant for the patient,” “I minimize my presence,” “Communication is maintained throughout,” and “I should not become accustomed to this.” In context, two distinct patterns of eliminative behavior support were seen: “Communication is maintained throughout” and “It is surely unpleasant for the patient.” The notion of “minimizing the nurse’s presence,” which was highly valued by nurses for “maintaining communication throughout,” appears to be an important aspect of everyday ethics in eliminative behavior support.