Determinants of Moral Distress Among Mental Health Professionals

Abstract

Background: It is assumed that understanding moral distress and its correlated factors among mental health professionals would enhance understanding of the ethical dilemmas that mental health professionals are confronting. Objectives: To identify moral distress determinants among Jordanian mental health professionals working in psychiatric in-patient settings. Methods: A cross-sectional descriptive design was used, employing self-administered questionnaire. Results: Two- steps multiple hierarchical regression analysis showed that model 1 that includes the demographic characteristics, was significant with R2 = .151, while in model 2 that included demographics and the psychological characteristics of stress factors, it was found to be also significant R2 = .243. Conclusion: Morally distressing environments might diminish the quality of psychiatric care provided as well as the job satisfaction among healthcare providers.