Development and Testing of an Instrument to Measure Moral Distress in Healthcare Professionals

Abstract

Background: Although moral distress is increasingly recognized as an important problem that threatens the integrity of health care providers and health care systems, few reliable and valid measures of moral distress are currently in use in research or clinical practice. This article describes the development and testing of a revised measure of moral distress, the Moral Distress Scale–Revised (MDS-R), designed for use in multiple health care settings and with multiple disciplines. Methods: After instrument development and content validity testing, a survey methodology was used to assess reliability and construct validity of the MDS-R. Registered nurses (n = 169) and physicians (n = 37) in eight intensive care units (ICUs) at an academic medical center in the southeastern United States participated; the survey was administered during a 2-week period in January 2011. Results: Adequate reliability and evidence of construct validity were demonstrated. Moral distress was significantly higher for nurses than physicians, although it was negatively correlated with ethical climate for both provider groups. MDS-R scores were significantly higher for those clinicians considering leaving their positions. The proportion of physicians and nurses who had left a previous position or who were considering leaving their current positions due to moral distress was high (16% and 31%, respectively). Conclusions: Initial testing of the MDS-R reveals promising evidence of instrument reliability and validity. The findings from this study lend further support to the important relationships between the moral distress of providers, the ethical climate of health care settings, and retention of health care professionals.