Evaluation of clinical situations leading to moral distress in nurses working in oncology wards of Tehran-based educational hospitals in 2012

Nurses are moral agents whose identity and integrity can be affected by moral distress. Oncology nurses face challenging clinical situations that led to moral distress. This study evaluated the clinical situations leading to moral distress experienced by oncology nurses. This descriptive-analytical study included 148 nurses with inclusion criteria who worked in oncology wards of hospitals in Tehran. The instruments included the demographic questionnaire and Corley’s Moral Distress Scale revised by Hamric wherein morally distressful situations are categorized in three sections. Data were analyzed in SPSS using descriptive statistics and within groups variance at the level of P<0.05. The moral distress mean intensity and mean frequency were 2.13±0.44 and 2.08±0.36 respectively. Nurses experienced high moral distress in cases where they failed to attain i nformed consent from the patients or when they ignored the physician’s order to take test from end-life patients which they felt were unnecessary. The greatest moral distress frequency and intensity score mean was associated with futile care. M oral distress is high Oncology nurses that show organizational intervention for the nurse education and supports.