Publications by authors named "Cynda H Rushton"

One factor potentially driving healthcare and hospital worker (HHW)'s declining mental health during the COVID-19 pandemic is feeling betrayed by institutional leaders, coworkers, and/or others' pandemic-related responses and behaviors. We investigated whether HHWs' betrayal-based moral injury was associated with greater mental distress and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms related to COVID-19. We also examined if these associations varied between clinical and non-clinical staff.

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Aim: To refine the Rushton Moral Resilience Scale (RMRS) by creating a more concise scale, improving the reliability, particularly of the personal integrity subscale and providing further evidence of validity.

Background: Healthcare workers are exposed to moral adversity in practice. When unable to preserve/restore their integrity, moral suffering ensues.

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Ethical challenges are inherent in nursing practice. They affect patients, families, teams, organizations, and nurses themselves. These challenges arise when there are competing core values or commitments and diverse views on how to balance or reconcile them.

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Background: Nurses face many ethical challenges, placing them at risk for moral distress and burnout and challenging their ability to provide safe, high-quality patient care. Little is known about the sustainability of interventions to address this problem.

Objective: To determine the long-term impact on acute care nurses of a 6-session experiential educational program called the Mindful Ethical Practice and Resilience Academy (MEPRA).

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AbstractThe COVID-19 pandemic has inspired numerous opportunities for telehealth implementation to meet diverse healthcare needs, including the use of virtual communication platforms to facilitate the growth of and access to clinical ethics consultation (CEC) services across the globe. Here we discuss the conceptualization and implementation of two different virtual CEC services that arose during the COVID-19 pandemic: the Clinical Ethics Malaysia COVID-19 Consultation Service and the Johns Hopkins Hospital Ethics Committee and Consultation Service. A common strength experienced by both platforms during virtual delivery included improved ability for local practitioners to address consultation needs for patient populations otherwise unable to access CEC services in their respective locations.

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The COVID-19 pandemic has taken a significant mental and emotional toll on critical care nurses. High patient acuity, staffing shortages, and increased care needs both in the hospital and in the community are contributing to increases in depression, anxiety, and overall burnout. Nurses who perceive, internalize, anticipate, and experience stigma may be hesitant to engage in mental health care and self-stewardship.

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Introduction: COVID-19 has led to exacerbated levels of traumatic stress and moral distress experienced by emergency nurses. This study contributes to understanding the perspectives of emergency nurses' perception of psychological trauma during COVID-19 and protective mechanisms used to build resilience.

Method: The primary method was qualitative analysis of semistructured interviews, with survey data on general resilience, moral resilience, and traumatic stress used to triangulate and understand qualitative findings.

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Objective: The aim of this study was to understand the traumatic stress and resilience of nurses who cared for patients with COVID-19.

Background: Studies have shown a high proportion of healthcare workers are at risk for developing posttraumatic stress disorder after a pandemic. Resilience factors are believed to play an important role in the well-being of healthcare professionals.

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Patients with serious respiratory illness and their caregivers suffer considerable burdens, and palliative care is a fundamental right for anyone who needs it. However, the overwhelming majority of patients do not receive timely palliative care before the end of life, despite robust evidence for improved outcomes. This policy statement by the American Thoracic Society (ATS) and partnering societies advocates for improved integration of high-quality palliative care early in the care continuum for patients with serious respiratory illness and their caregivers and provides clinicians and policymakers with a framework to accomplish this.

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It's crucial to understand the perspective of nurses during the pandemic to determine actionable steps for moving forward. This analysis looks at nurses' perceptions of their organizations' effectiveness during the first surge of the COVID-19 pandemic and its impact on moral injury and moral resilience.

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Background: Global health crises, such as the COVID-19 pandemic, confront healthcare workers (HCW) with increased exposure to potentially morally distressing events. The pandemic has provided an opportunity to explore the links between moral distress, moral resilience, and emergence of mental health symptoms in HCWs.

Methods: A total of 962 Canadian healthcare workers (88.

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Objective: The aim of this study was to explore relationships between organizational factors and moral injury among healthcare workers and the impact of perceptions of their leaders and organizations during COVID-19.

Background: COVID-19 placed healthcare workers at risk for moral injury, which often involves feeling betrayed by people with authority and can impact workplace culture.

Methods: Secondary data from a Web-based survey of mid-Atlantic healthcare workers were analyzed using mixed methods.

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The hidden epidemic of burnout exacts a staggering toll on professionals and patients, reflected in increased risk of medical errors, complications, and staff turnover. For surgeons, nurses, and other team members working at the sharp end of care, adverse events can amplify work exhaustion, interpersonal disengagement, and risk of moral adversity. Visionary leaders are not content to mitigate burnout and moral injury; they elevate the human experience throughout health care by modeling wellness, fostering moral courage, promoting safety of professionals, and restoring joy in work.

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When patients are harmed by health care, concerns fan out in all directions. Patients and families confront a sea of uncertainty, contending with injuries that drain them physically, emotionally, and financially. Health care professionals experience a powerful mix of emotions, but are seldom afforded the time to process what happened or the resources to relieve suffering and prevent harm.

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At the foundation of clinical medicine is the relationship among patients, families, and health care professionals. Implicit to that social contract, professionals pledge to bring clinical excellence to advance their patients' wellness and healing-and to prevent harm. Patients trust that those privileged to deliver care will do so unwaveringly in service of patients' best interests; however, the incentives and infrastructure surrounding health care delivery can promote or undermine individual performance, teamwork, and patient safety.

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The COVID-19 pandemic has had a profound impact on health professionals, adding to the moral suffering and burnout that existed prepandemic. The physical, psychological, and moral toll of the pandemic has threatened the well-being and integrity of clinicians. The narrative of self-sacrifice and heroism bolstered people early on but was not sustainable over time.

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