Ethics is defined as the knowledge of the principles of right and wrong. Sensitivity to ethical issues should be a prerequisite for any profession enjoying public trust. Nursing is a matter of public trust and therefore we must be aware of ethical concerns when dealing with patients (Barry, 2002). Ethical dilemmas such as consent require nurses to decide what possible actions to take. By discussing the ethical principles of autonomy, beneficence, and nonmaleficence and applying ethical theories, I hope to clearly explain how nurses justify their actions. My understanding of ethical responsibility is that I am responsible to myself; I must always be honest, fair and respectful and I believe that I must treat others as I would like to be treated. Nurses faced with an ethical dilemma must decide which possible action is the right action to take and how choosing this action over others is justified (Singleton & McLaren, 1995). During the module we looked at various ethical models, including Seedhouse's Ethical Grid (1998) and Curtin's Ethical Decision-Making Model (1982), which provide guidance for resolving clinical dilemmas; certain aspects of these models will be developed in the next section of this work. Rumbold (1999) emphasizes that respect for a person's autonomy is one of the crucial principles of nursing ethics and ethical models. Gillon (1986, pp. 56) defines autonomy as “the capacity to think, decide and act on the basis of such thinking and decision, freely and independently and without authorization or hindrance”. It can therefore be said that patients can expect to be fully informed of all treatment methods available to them, in order to exercise their right to consent or refuse such treatment. For a nurse to fully respect patient autonomy, the nurse must respect any decision made by the patient, and to do otherwise is to ignore the patient as an autonomous being (Fletcher et al., 1995). Fletcher, Holt, Brazier et al. (1995) explain that when considering patients' well-being, nurses may display paternalism towards their patients. Paternalism is believing that it is right to make a decision for someone without taking that person's wishes into consideration, or even overriding their wishes; therefore a primordial autonomy. This happens even more in mental health and learning disability services as people assume they may not be capable of making decisions for themselves. Singleton and Mclaren (1995) suggest that the rationale for nursing interventions is based on the concept of beneficence and non-responsibility. -malfeasance takes precedence over considerations of respect for the patient's autonomy.