SynthesisInternational journal of environmental research and public health2022
Moral Distress Scores of Nurses Working in Intensive Care Units for Adults Using Corley's Scale: A Systematic Review.
Synthesis in International journal of environmental research and public health, 2022. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 24 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.
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Who cites it
24 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.
- The development of proxy indicators to measure workforce well-being in emergency obstetric and neonatal care settings.Journal of global health · 2025Pooled it
- Moral distress among acute mental health nurses: A systematic review.Nursing ethics · 2024Pooled it
- Iranian Nurses' Experiences of Moral Distress in Paediatric Wards: A Qualitative Study.Nursing open · 2026Article
- End-of-life decision-making in very old critically ill patients.European geriatric medicine · 2026Review
- [When the one who heals dies. The physician at the end of life].Revista medica del Instituto Mexicano del Seguro Social · 2026Review
- Emotional intelligence and its relationship with moral distress in nurses: a cross-sectional study.BMC nursing · 2026Article
- Moral distress among nurses: an umbrella review of its prevalence, severity, causes, and consequences.BMC nursing · 2026Article
- Reimagining resuscitation ethics: a narrative review and emergent ethical pathways model.Resuscitation plus · 2026Review
- Article
- The Outcomes of A Multifaceted Educational Intervention to Reduce Moral Distress Among Critical Care Nurses.Journal of clinical nursing · 2025Article
- Moral distress and intention to leave among intensive care unit nurses in the United Arab Emirates.International journal of nursing sciences · 2025Article
- Moral Distress, Professional Burnout, and Potential Staff Turnover in Intensive Care Nursing Practice in Latvia-Phase 1.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2025Article
- The Prevalence of Ethical Conflicts and Influencing Factors Among Critical Care Nurses in China: A National Cross-sectional Study: [RETRACTED].The journal of nursing research : JNR · 2025Article
- Ethically challenging situations in eldercare: A cross-sectional study.Nursing ethics · 2025Article
- Characteristics of moral distress from nurses' perspectives: An integrative review.International journal of nursing sciences · 2024Review
- The relationship between moral distress and clinical care quality among nurses: an analytical cross-sectional study.BMC nursing · 2024Article
- Article
- The influence of psychological resilience and nursing practice environment on nurses' moral courage: A cross-sectional study.Nursing open · 2024Article
- Inductive process of moral distress development in viewpoints from surgical nurses: a mixed-method study.BMC nursing · 2024Article
- Moral courage and its influencing factor among oncology specialist nurses: A multi-centre cross-sectional study.Nursing open · 2024Article
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Authors and funding
8 authors.
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Abstract
backgroundNo systematic review in the literature has analyzed the intensity and frequency of moral distress among ICU nurses. No study seems to have mapped the leading personal and professional characteristics associated with high levels of moral distress. This systematic review aimed to describe the intensity and frequency of moral distress experienced by nurses in ICUs, as assessed by Corley's instruments on moral distress (the Moral Distress Scale and the Moral Distress Scale-Revised). Additionally, this systematic review aimed to summarize the correlates of moral distress.
methodsA systematic search and review were performed using the following databases: Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature (CINAHL), the National Library of Medicine (MEDLINE/PubMed), and Psychological Abstracts Information Services (PsycINFO). The review methodology followed PRISMA guidelines. The quality assessment of the included studies was conducted using the Newcastle-Ottawa Scale.
resultsFindings showed a moderate level of moral distress among nurses working in ICUs. The findings of this systematic review confirm that there are a lot of triggers of moral distress related to patient-level factors, unit/team-level factors, or system-level causes. Beyond the triggers of moral distress, this systematic review showed some correlates of moral distress: those nurses working in ICUs with less work experience and those who are younger, female, and intend to leave their jobs have higher levels of moral distress. This systematic review's findings show a positive correlation between professional autonomy, empowerment, and moral distress scores. Additionally, nurses who feel supported by head nurses report lower moral distress scores.
conclusionsThis review could help better identify which professionals are at a higher risk of experiencing moral distress, allowing the early detection of those at risk of moral distress, and giving the organization some tools to implement preventive strategies.
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