Moral sensitivity of nurses in a university hospital in southern Brazil

Abstract

Objective: to analyze the moral sensitivity of nurses while facing ethical conflicts at the professional practice and verify their association with sociodemographic and laborrelated variables. Method: cross-sectional study, carried out with 115 nurses from a university hospital of southern Brazil. The Moral Sensitivity Questionnaire – Brazilian Version was applied from April to May 2023. Descriptive and analytical statistics were used to analyze the data. Results: the mean of the nurse’s total moral sensitivity score was 3.49 (SD=0.36). The lowest score levels of moral sensitivity were related to the constructs“modified autonomy”(2.48; SD=1.08) and“meaning of the moral structure”(3.46; SD=0.66), while the highest levels were associated with the constructs “respect for patient autonomy” (3.90; SD=0.85) and “experiencing moral conflict” (3.59; SD=1.02). The constructs “modified autonomy” and “meaning of moral structure”were statistically significant regarding the association with the number of employment contracts, work shift and weekly hours worked (p=0.045, p=0.034, and p=0.044, respectively). Conclusion: nurses exhibit moderate levels of moral sensitivity, and aspects of work are related to the ability to recognize and act on ethical problems.