INDIANAPOLIS—Refusal, delay, or limitation of medical treatments, including vaccines, is an increasing phenomenon facing nurses and other healthcare practitioners daily. Sigma Theta Tau International Honor Society of Nursing’s (Sigma) latest title, Against Medical Advice: Addressing Treatment Refusal, details many of the medical, legal, social, cultural, and religious factors associated with treatment refusals.

Against medical advice (AMA) cases cause complex and diverse ethical dilemmas that profoundly impact the health, welfare, and mental and emotional well-being of everyone involved. Authors Luanne Linnard-Palmer, EdD, RN, CPN, and Ellen Christiansen, DNP, RN, FNP-BC, PHNA-BC, prepare healthcare professionals to compassionately assess and understand people’s beliefs, cultures, and philosophical perspectives. They provide proven strategies and step-by-step examples that guide providers to consider the patient’s and family’s point of view, share concerns with other healthcare team members, and negotiate the best possible outcome for all involved. 

“Healthcare professionals must be aware of the magnitude of refusal scenarios and that the very best way to assist individuals and families who refuse treatment and vaccines is to be prepared for conversations, listen intently, educate on alternatives (if available), and share known consequences of refusal. For parents/guardians of children, legal aspects of treatment refusal should be studied and understood,” said author Luanne Linnard-Palmer.

Download a sample chapter from the Sigma Repository. 

The book is available to purchase at SigmaMarketplace.org/SigmaBooks.  

Against Medical Advice: Addressing Treatment Refusal
By Luanne Linnard-Palmer, EdD, RN, CPN, and Ellen Christiansen, DNP, RN, FNP-BC, PHNA-BC
Published by Sigma, 2022
ISBN-13: 9781646480500
EPUB ISBN: 9781646480517
PDF ISBN: 9781646480524
Price: US $34.95
Trade paperback, 276 pages
Trim size: 6 x 9

About the authors:

Luanne Linnard-Palmer, EdD, RN, CPN, is a Professor of Nursing at Dominican University of California in San Rafael, California, and a Pediatric Educational Consultant and Pediatric Clinical Nurse at Sutter Health’s California Pacific Medical Center in San Francisco.

Ellen Christiansen, DNP, RN, FNP-BC, PHNA-BC, is an Associate Professor of Nursing at Dominican University of California, where she teaches Community and Public Health Nursing.

About Sigma:
The Sigma Theta Tau International Honor Society of Nursing (Sigma) is a nonprofit organization with the mission of developing nurse leaders anywhere to improve healthcare everywhere. Founded in 1922, Sigma has more than 135,000 active members and 550 chapters at institutions of higher education and healthcare partners from Armenia, Australia, and Botswana to Thailand, the United States, and Wales. Sigma members include clinical nurses and administrators, academic nurse educators and researchers, policymakers, entrepreneurs, and others working to fulfill the organization’s vision of connected, empowered nurse leaders transforming global healthcare. 

Learn more at SigmaNursing.org.