Student nurses experiences of moral distress: A concept analysis

Abstract

AimTo understand how pre‐registration student nurses experience moral distress and refine the concept in this population.BackgroundThe experience of moral distress has positive and negative effects for health professionals and negatively impacts on patient care. Moral distress is a fluid concept which permits the experience to be varied among different populations. Despite empirical research, a concept analysis has not been performed in the student nurse population.Data SourcesElectronic databases were searched via Ebsco Host Complete and included Cinahl, Medline, APA Psych in March 2024. Search terms included ‘Moral Distress’ AND ‘Student’, ‘Moral Distress’ and ‘Baccalaureate.’ Search limits included articles between 2014 and 2024, English Language. Twenty‐five papers were included in the review and consisted of eight quantitative studies, 11 qualitative studies, three mixed methods studies and three literature/systematic reviews.MethodsAn integrated mixed research synthesis (Sandelowski, Voils, Barroso 2006) was conducted and organized into Walker, Avant's (2005) framework of antecedents, attributes and consequences. Braun and Clarkes (2006) thematic analysis was then used to generate themes from the literature.ResultsAntecedents emerged as students having moral sensitivity, they recognize unethical circumstances. Attributes identified roots of moral distress. These roots include poor patient care, harm to the patient and unsafe care. Students experience of morally reprehensible events is exacerbated by the disempowerment they experience as being ‘just a student’. Student nurses who do not exhibit moral courage and do not oppose immoral practices do so due to internal constraints which transpire as fear of conflict, withdrawal of learning opportunities, and fear of disruption to learning. This is influenced by their registered nurse supervisor relationship. Consequences of moral distress identify negative feelings, coping mechanisms and positive effects.ConclusionThe attributes of moral distress in the student nurse population have distinctive features which should be considered by nurse educators and in empirical research.Patient or Public ContributionNone, as this is a concept analysis that contributes to theory development and is not empirical research.