Lived Experiences of Moral Disengagement Among Intensive Care and Emergency Department Nurses: A Phenomenological Study.

Introduction: Understanding the experiences of nurses involved in moral disengagement is essential for ensuring high-quality care and maintaining a skilled healthcare workforce. Objectives: The purpose of this study is to examine how nurses experience moral disengagement as a cognitive strategy used to defy moral standards. Methods: A phenomenological perspective was taken, with nine nurses from three different teaching hospitals participating in semi-structured interviews with the researchers. Results: The transcripts were analyzed using Van Manen's phenomenological approach to thematic analysis. The research identified four overarching themes: subjective appraisals of the usefulness of tasks engaged in, justification, the difference between "how I appear to be" and "what I actually am," and the "contagion" of moral disengagement. Conclusions: These findings highlight the complexity of moral disengagement and the potential impact it can have on nursing and perceptions in health care. This study calls for a re-evaluation of nursing policies and increasing the professional awareness of ethics to strive for best practices in the profession.