A U-M study examined the factors that went into decision-making around hospital transfers during the pandemic—and the moral distress that often resulted from it.
Tag: Moral Distress
Program Leads to Sustained Improvements in Nurses’ Moral Resilience
An experiential educational program led to sustained improvements in nurses’ skills in mindfulness, resilience and competence in confronting ethical challenges. In the study, more than 95% of the 245 participating nurses reported confronting ethical challenges in their workplace, but only 15% had previously received formal ethics training.
Registration Opens for Premier Critical Care Nursing Conference
Registration is now open for AACN’s National Teaching Institute & Critical Care Exposition (NTI), to be held in Philadelphia, May 22-24, 2023. The NTI experience will address nearly 50 clinical and professional development topics and include the largest and most comprehensive trade show expressly for progressive and critical care nurses.
Majority of Clinicians in U.S. Safety Net Practices Report ‘Moral Distress’ During COVID-19 Pandemic
UNC School of Medicine’s Donald Pathman, MD, MPH, found that most healthcare providers experienced either mild or intense levels of moral distress during the first year of the pandemic due to issues related to patient care and their workplaces.
AACN Study Underscores Pandemic Damage and the Benefits of Healthy Work Environments
Results from the American Association of Critical-Care Nurses’ national survey of 9,000-plus nurses underscore the ongoing impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on nurses and the benefits of creating healthy work environments to support nurse staffing, retention and optimal patient care.
Researchers Reveal Moral Distress Impact, Actions to Support Doctors During Pandemic
During the COVID-19 pandemic, healthcare organizations, leaders, researchers, and practitioners have attempted on the fly to deal with the inherent stresses, strains, and struggles related to an unprecedented healthcare crisis in modern times.
PICU Clinicians Report Moral Distress, Ethical Concerns
During the initial surge of COVID-19 in the United States, pediatric critical care professionals were already experiencing high rates of moral distress as they faced the rapid emergence of complex ethical challenges and the potential impact of COVID-19 on their young patients and their communities.
Growing Use of Mechanical Circulatory Support Affects Clinician Well-Being, Moral Distress
The growing use of mechanical circulatory support may contribute to high levels of moral distress for clinicians who regularly care for ICU patients receiving the aggressive but life-sustaining therapy, according to a study by researchers at Columbia University Irving Medical Center.
COVID 19: Learning About Nurses’ Moral Distress During Crisis Care
During the pandemic, nurses continue to deliver a crisis standard of care, which requires allocating and using scarce medical resources. This care, in the context of COVID-19, an infectious and potentially fatal illness, requires nurses to balance their duty to care for patients while protecting themselves and their families. Crisis standards of care cause high moral distress for clinicians. The lack of preparedness of U.S. hospitals to initiate crisis care standards is likely amplifying such distress. Could better leadership communication mitigate this distress and consequential poorer mental health?
AACN Critical Care Conference Brings Together Thousands of Nurses for Education, Inspiration
The American Association of Critical-Care Nurses expects 6,000+ progressive and critical care nurses to attend its virtual National Teaching Institute & Critical Care Exposition (NTI, #NTI2021) May 24-27.
Nurses are on the Frontlines of COVID-19 but Their Expertise Remains Missing from Policy Decisions
Nurses’ perspectives on the COVID-19 pandemic are unique and essential to informing decisions made by federal leaders, and they should be included in key decision-making groups, urges the American Association of Critical-Care Nurses (AACN)

Editorial: Pandemic Puts Spotlight on Front-line Clinicians
In “A Tribute to Frontline Health Care Professionals During the COVID-19 Pandemic,” Annette Bourgault, editor of Critical Care Nurse, offers her personal and professional appreciation for the dedicated clinicians in acute and critical care.

Q&A with Cynda Rushton, committee member of the National Academy of Medicine Study on Clinician Burnout
Johns Hopkins School of Nursing expert Cynda Rushton explains the 2019 National Academy of Medicine report on clinician burnout and provider well-being.