Which of the following situations is an example of moral distress?
A) You hear nurses in the lounge making off-color jokes about a patient. You are afraid to speak up for fear of retaliation.
B) You have been late for work a couple of times in the last 2 weeks, and your co-workers are covering for you.
C) You become romantically involved with a co-worker, which is against the unit policy, so you resign your position.
D) You purposefully use vague language when explaining a patient's condition to the family. Staff expects that the patient may be brain-dead, but test results are not yet conclusive.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

Moral distress occurs when one knows the right thing to do, but institutional constraints make it nearly impossible to pursue the right course of action. In choice A, the individual recognizes the inappropriateness of the jokes and feels an ethical obligation to speak up but fears retaliation, exemplifying moral distress.

Which of the Following Situations Is an Example of Moral