Do Pediatric Medical Subspecialty Residents Experience Moral Distress?

Abstract

Moral distress is a human experience arising when an individual knows what is ethically appropriate but is unable to carry out that action due to institutional constraints. It affects healthcare professions when there is a psychological disequilibrium and can lead to burnout. In this research, descriptive phenomenology was used to investigate whether pediatric subspecialty residents experience moral distress. The results indicate that they do experience moral distress for reasons including issues regarding futile treatment, barriers that prevent effective communication, inadequate resources and strenuous relationships with parents of patients. Residents in this study cope with moral distress by talking with colleagues or senior staff members about the difficult situations they encountered. Recommendations from this research include the introduction of regular rounds sessions to deal with difficult cases and regular orientations on support services available to medical subspecialty residents.