Evidence map›Paper›PMID 37842704›Full record

ArticleFrontiers in psychology2023

The mediating roles of workplace support and ethical work environment in associations between leadership and moral distress: a longitudinal study of Canadian health care workers during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Rachel A Plouffe, Anthony Nazarov, Ann M Heesters, Chandlee C Dickey, Laura Foxcroft, Fardous Hosseiny, Tri Le, P Andrea Lum, Maede S Nouri, Patrick Smith and 1 more

Abstract read
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Article in Frontiers in psychology, 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 3 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
3citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

3 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Leadership and Employees' Mental Health Under Disruption: A Scoping Review and Critical Interpretive Synthesis.European journal of investigation in health, psychology and education · 2026
    Review
  2. Article
  3. Reimagining effective workplace support for health workers.Bulletin of the World Health Organization · 2024
    Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

11 authors.

Rachel A PlouffeMacDonald Franklin Operational Stress Injury Research Centre, London, ON, Canada.
Anthony NazarovMacDonald Franklin Operational Stress Injury Research Centre, London, ON, Canada.
Ann M HeestersDalla Lana School of Public Health, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada.
Chandlee C DickeySchulich School of Medicine and Dentistry, Western University, London, ON, Canada.
Laura FoxcroftSchulich School of Medicine and Dentistry, Western University, London, ON, Canada.
Fardous HosseinyAtlas Institute for Veterans and Families, Ottawa, ON, Canada.
Tri LeMacDonald Franklin Operational Stress Injury Research Centre, London, ON, Canada.
P Andrea LumSchulich School of Medicine and Dentistry, Western University, London, ON, Canada.
Maede S NouriMacDonald Franklin Operational Stress Injury Research Centre, London, ON, Canada.
Patrick SmithMacDonald Franklin Operational Stress Injury Research Centre, London, ON, Canada.
J Don RichardsonMacDonald Franklin Operational Stress Injury Research Centre, London, ON, Canada.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Introduction: The COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in heightened moral distress among health care workers (HCWs) worldwide. Past research has shown that effective leadership may mitigate potential for the development of moral distress. However, no research to date has considered the mechanisms by which leadership might have an influence on moral distress. We sought to evaluate longitudinally whether Canadian HCWs' perceptions of workplace support and ethical work environment would mediate associations between leadership and moral distress. Methods: A total of 239 French- and English-speaking Canadian HCWs employed during the COVID-19 pandemic were recruited to participate in a longitudinal online survey. Participants completed measures of organizational and supervisory leadership at baseline and follow-up assessments of workplace support, perceptions of an ethical work environment, and moral distress. Results: Associations between both organizational and supervisory leadership and moral distress were fully mediated by workplace supports and perceptions of an ethical work environment. Discussion: To ensure HCW well-being and quality of care, it is important to ensure that HCWs are provided with adequate workplace supports, including manageable work hours, social support, and recognition for efforts, as well as an ethical workplace environment.

Indexed as

healthcareleadershipmoral distressworkplace ethicsworkplace support

Identifiers

PMID37842704
PMCPMC10570733

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.