Background
Ethical issues may pose challenges to nurses; moral sensitivity can help them to overcome these challenges. Identifying variables related to moral sensitivity can help in planning to increase nurses’ moral sensitivity. This study aimed to investigate the relationship among mindfulness, empathy, and moral sensitivity in a sample of nurses.
Methods
In the present study, a cross-sectional design utilizing Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) was conducted. The nurses in a private hospital in Yazd, Iran, were invited to participate in the study (n=162) using simple random sampling. In order to gather the data, the Freiburg’s mindfulness inventory, moral sensitivity questionnaire, and revised Jefferson’s empathy scale were used. The hypothesized model was analyzed by SEM.
Results
The results show that Mindfulness (β=0.41, t=5.53, p<0.01) and empathy (β=0.52, t=6.77, p<0.01) had a significant direct effect on moral sensitivity. However, mindfulness had an indirect effect on nurses’ moral sensitivity via empathy improvement (z= 6.25, p<.01).
Conclusion
Empathy played a significant mediating role in the relationship between mindfulness and moral sensitivity, so mindfulness-based interventions with an emphasis on empathy may provide an opportunity to increase moral sensitivity in nurses.
The frequency and impact of pain and depression have been long underestimated in Multiple Sclerosis (MS) patients. Therefore, systematic screening and management of pain and depression are recommended for these patients. The current study evaluated the effectiveness of Mindfulness-Based Therapy (MBT) in reducing pain and depression in patients with MS. Methods: This was a quasi-experimental study with a pre-test, post-test and a control group design. We conducted a randomized trial on 24 MS patients with primary pain and depression. Moreover, they were members of the MS Society at Shahid Sadooghi Hospital in Yazd City, Iran, in 2017. The study participants were randomly divided into the test (n=12) and control (n=12) groups. The study participants were evaluated at 3-time points (baseline, end of the treatment, follow-up) using the McGill Pain Questionnaire and Depression subscale of the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) as outcome measures. Results: The repeated measures Analyses of Variance (ANOVA) results revealed that MBT significantly reduced pain and depression in MS patients compared to the controls (P<0. 05). The effect of outcome measures was maintained at 2-months follow-up (P<0.05). The effect size on pain and depression were 0.41 and 0.43, respectively. Conclusion: MBT has been effective on pain and depression reduction among MS patients.
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