Nurses' Hidden Struggles: The Unseen Toll of COVID-19

The COVID-19 pandemic has been tough on everyone, but nurses have faced some of the biggest challenges. They've had to deal with shortages of supplies, overwhelming workloads, and tough ethical choices. This has taken a toll on their well-being, job security, and the care they can provide. A recent study looked at how much moral injury nurses experienced during the pandemic. Moral injury is the distress that comes from being forced to make decisions that go against one's values or moral beliefs. The study reviewed 16 articles involving over 5, 800 nurses. It found that nurses, on average, had moderate to high levels of moral injury. The study also found that the loss of religious or spiritual faith was the most significant issue among nurses. This was followed by feelings of betrayal and feelings of being powerless. The lowest score was for religious struggles, which showed that not all nurses found comfort in religion during this time.The study also found that nurses in the emergency department were the most affected. This makes sense because they were often at the frontline of the pandemic, dealing with the most critical cases. The study also found that moral injury levels were higher in the early stages of the pandemic in 2020, which was when the situation was most chaotic. The study suggests that healthcare institutions need to do more to support their nurses. They need to strengthen their ethical support systems and improve management. They also need to consider the role of religion and spirituality in helping nurses cope with moral injury. However, it's important to note that this study only looked at nurses. Other healthcare workers may have experienced similar or even greater levels of moral injury. It's also important to remember that moral injury is not the same as burnout or stress. It's a specific type of distress that comes from ethical conflicts.