Moral distress in physicians

ABSTRACT

Moral distress, initially described as the form of distress that occurs "when one knows the right thing to do, but institutional constraints make it nearly impossible to pursue the right course of action," is highly prevalent among physicians. Contemporary descriptions of moral distress involve three domains including negative attitudes one experiences, one's perceived involvement in a situation, and perceived moral undesirability of the situation. Common sources of moral distress stem from clinical situations and internal and external constraints. Interventions can be targeted at the root causes and components of moral injury and distress, on both individual and organizational levels. These include fostering resiliency in individual clinicians, providing support and moral leadership and ethical culture. This chapter will provide an overview of moral distress in physicians including definitions, common sources and constraints, as well as interventions with specific examples from oncology and the COVID-19 pandemic. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved)