병원 간호사의 도덕적 민감성과 도덕적 고뇌*

The purpose of this descriptive study was to examine the moral sensitivity and moral distress among clinical nurses in South Korea. Data were collected from 361 nurses between March and April 2009 using the following self-reported questionnaire: the Moral Sensitivity Questionnaire(Han, et al., 2009) and the Nurses’ Moral Distress Measurement Tool(Yu, 2003). An SAS program(version 9.1) was used to analyze the data by means of a t-test, ANOVA, and Scheffé test. The mean score of moral sensitivity was 5.13, and the sub-domain of patient-oriented care had the highest score (5.69). The mean score of moral distress was 2.89, and the emotional subdomain had the highest score (3.65). Scores for other sub-domains of moral distress were as follows: recognizable distress (2.94), situational distress (2.86), and behavioral distress (2.67). Moral distress was significantly higher among the nurses who had education beyond the postgraduate level, clinical practice of 3-5 years, working experience in the emergency room, ethics education at a clinic, or experience in moral dilemma. The positive relationship between nurses’ moral sensitivity and moral distress were relatively weak. Future research needs to explore the factors that could have an effect on between nurses’ moral sensitivity and distress.