Moral Stress among Swedish Health Care Workers During the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Cross-Sectional Study
Aims: This study quantifies to what extent Health care workers (HCWs) experienced moral stress and to what extent their experiences of moral stress were related to gender and age as well as to working directly with COVID-19 patients and other work-related factors. Methods: This study consists of a c...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Stockholm University Press
2023-02-01
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| Series: | Scandinavian Journal of Work and Organizational Psychology |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://account.sjwop.com/index.php/su-j-sjwop/article/view/170 |
| _version_ | 1797845442238611456 |
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| author | Martina E. Gustavsson Niklas Juth Johan von Schreeb Filip K. Arnberg |
| author_facet | Martina E. Gustavsson Niklas Juth Johan von Schreeb Filip K. Arnberg |
| author_sort | Martina E. Gustavsson |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Aims: This study quantifies to what extent Health care workers (HCWs) experienced moral stress and to what extent their experiences of moral stress were related to gender and age as well as to working directly with COVID-19 patients and other work-related factors. Methods: This study consists of a cross-sectional survey that was conducted among 16,044 Swedish HCWs. A total of 153,300 HCWs and support staff who participated in the COVID-19 training offered by the Karolinska Institute were invited by email to participate in a web survey during autumn 2020. Results: This study is the first to quantify the frequency and severity of moral stress in a large group of HCWs. Moral stress was reported to a higher extent by HCWs involved in COVID-19 care and those involved in direct patient care. A lack of resources and the restrictions that hindered the patients’ family and friends from being involved were major causes of moral stress. Informal support was reported as being the most available and useful for dealing with moral stress. Conclusions: Our findings suggest that moral stress is common among HCWs who work with infected patients during a pandemic. The goal should not be to eliminate moral stress, as such stress may be viewed as a normal reaction to moral issues, but organizational structures (sufficient staffing and resources), could decrease the likelihood of morally stressful situations. Finally, to avoid the development of moral distress and its potential consequences, improvements could be made in providing HCWs with support tools for managing moral stress. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-09T17:39:06Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-fd6ac872579f49b4a6f860483c7f2498 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2002-2867 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-09T17:39:06Z |
| publishDate | 2023-02-01 |
| publisher | Stockholm University Press |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Scandinavian Journal of Work and Organizational Psychology |
| spelling | doaj.art-fd6ac872579f49b4a6f860483c7f24982023-04-17T07:42:12ZengStockholm University PressScandinavian Journal of Work and Organizational Psychology2002-28672023-02-01812210.16993/sjwop.17062Moral Stress among Swedish Health Care Workers During the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Cross-Sectional StudyMartina E. Gustavsson0Niklas Juth1https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1339-4956Johan von Schreeb2https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5331-3305Filip K. Arnberg3https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1317-2093Centre for Research on Healthcare in Disasters, Health Systems and Policy (HSP), Department of Global Public Health, Karolinska Institutet, StockholmCentre for Research ethics and Bioethics (CRB), Department of Public Health and Caring Sciences, Uppsala University, Uppsala; Stockholm Centre for Healthcare Ethics (CHE), Department of Learning, Informatics, Management and Ethics (LIME), Karolinska Institutet, StockholmCentre for Research on Healthcare in Disasters, Health Systems and Policy (HSP), Department of Global Public Health, Karolinska Institutet, StockholmNational Centre for Disaster Psychiatry, Department of Medical Sciences, Uppsala University, UppsalaAims: This study quantifies to what extent Health care workers (HCWs) experienced moral stress and to what extent their experiences of moral stress were related to gender and age as well as to working directly with COVID-19 patients and other work-related factors. Methods: This study consists of a cross-sectional survey that was conducted among 16,044 Swedish HCWs. A total of 153,300 HCWs and support staff who participated in the COVID-19 training offered by the Karolinska Institute were invited by email to participate in a web survey during autumn 2020. Results: This study is the first to quantify the frequency and severity of moral stress in a large group of HCWs. Moral stress was reported to a higher extent by HCWs involved in COVID-19 care and those involved in direct patient care. A lack of resources and the restrictions that hindered the patients’ family and friends from being involved were major causes of moral stress. Informal support was reported as being the most available and useful for dealing with moral stress. Conclusions: Our findings suggest that moral stress is common among HCWs who work with infected patients during a pandemic. The goal should not be to eliminate moral stress, as such stress may be viewed as a normal reaction to moral issues, but organizational structures (sufficient staffing and resources), could decrease the likelihood of morally stressful situations. Finally, to avoid the development of moral distress and its potential consequences, improvements could be made in providing HCWs with support tools for managing moral stress.https://account.sjwop.com/index.php/su-j-sjwop/article/view/170occupational healthpsychosocial work stressmoral stressmoral distressmoral challengesethical challengeshealth care workerscovid-19 pandemic |
| spellingShingle | Martina E. Gustavsson Niklas Juth Johan von Schreeb Filip K. Arnberg Moral Stress among Swedish Health Care Workers During the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Cross-Sectional Study Scandinavian Journal of Work and Organizational Psychology occupational health psychosocial work stress moral stress moral distress moral challenges ethical challenges health care workers covid-19 pandemic |
| title | Moral Stress among Swedish Health Care Workers During the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Cross-Sectional Study |
| title_full | Moral Stress among Swedish Health Care Workers During the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Cross-Sectional Study |
| title_fullStr | Moral Stress among Swedish Health Care Workers During the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Cross-Sectional Study |
| title_full_unstemmed | Moral Stress among Swedish Health Care Workers During the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Cross-Sectional Study |
| title_short | Moral Stress among Swedish Health Care Workers During the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Cross-Sectional Study |
| title_sort | moral stress among swedish health care workers during the covid 19 pandemic a cross sectional study |
| topic | occupational health psychosocial work stress moral stress moral distress moral challenges ethical challenges health care workers covid-19 pandemic |
| url | https://account.sjwop.com/index.php/su-j-sjwop/article/view/170 |
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