Measuring moral distress and moral injury: A systematic review and content analysis of existing scales

BACKGROUND

Moral distress (MD) and moral injury (MI) are related constructs describing the negative consequences of morally challenging stressors. Despite growing support for the clinical relevance of these constructs, ongoing challenges regarding measurement quality risk limiting research and clinical advances. This study summarizes the nature, quality, and utility of existing MD and MI scales, and provides recommendations for future use.

METHOD

We identified psychometric studies describing the development or validation of MD or MI scales and extracted information on methodological and psychometric qualities. Content analyses identified specific outcomes measured by each scale.

RESULTS

We reviewed 77 studies representing 42 unique scales. The quality of psychometric approaches varied greatly across studies, and most failed to examine convergent and divergent validity. Content analyses indicated most scales measure exposures to potential moral stressors and outcomes together, with relatively few measuring only exposures (n = 3) or outcomes (n = 7). Scales using the term MD typically assess general distress. Scales using the term MI typically assess several specific outcomes.

CONCLUSIONS

Results show how the terms MD and MI are applied in research. Several scales were identified as appropriate for research and clinical use. Recommendations for the application, development, and validation of MD and MI scales are provided.

Critical intercession for non-religious Canadian Veterans on the intersections of moral injury, religion, and spirituality

LAY SUMMARY

With the concept of moral injury being adopted as a way of understanding psychological distress experienced by Veterans, there is a growing interest in what role religion or spirituality might play as a factor in the risk of, or resilience against, experiencing this form of trauma. There is also interest in how religion and spirituality might be used to help treat moral injuries. However, most of the research to date has been conducted with American Christian Veterans and military service members. What is in question is whether these ideas work in the context of Veterans and service members of the Canadian Armed Forces. This article presents a critical warning about how the use of religion and spirituality might possibly cause harm instead of helping as intended.

Sex and gender: More than just demographic variables

LAY SUMMARY

Taking as a starting point that sex and gender are not the same thing, a principal understanding of Gender-Based Analysis Plus (GBA+), this article reviews research published in 2020 on the health and well-being of Veterans and currently serving members of the Canadian Armed Forces. The purpose of this review was to see how sex and gender were referred to in this published literature. The published research tended not to differentiate between sex and gender, often using the two terms as though they referred to the same thing. Possible reasons for why this has happened are explored, as is the importance of treating sex and gender as fundamentally different things.

Chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting in breast cancer patients: a prospective observational study

Despite advances in the prevention and treatment of emesis, nausea and vomiting are still considered by patients to be among the most severe and feared adverse effects of chemotherapy for breast cancer. There is, however, a paucity of prospective data documenting the prevalence and severity of emesis in patients with breast cancer in the era of modern antiemetics. This prospective multicenter study evaluated chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting (CINV) in patients with breast cancer. Patients were given a daily diary to record the frequency and severity of nausea and vomiting during the first 5 days following chemotherapy. Data were collected until either the cessation of chemotherapy or the administration of a maximum of 6 cycles of treatment. Data are available from 143 patients who received a total of 766 cycles of chemotherapy. Prevalence rates of any nausea or any vomiting were, respectively, 37% and 13% at 24 hours and 70% and 15% during days 2-5. Severe emesis was reported by fewer than 10% of patients. Risk factors associated with CINV included age younger than 40 years, nausea expectation, not eating before treatment, and low alcohol use. The prevalence of severe CINV for breast cancer was relatively low compared with the prevalence reported in the literature. As a result of the observational design of this study, the results may better reflect the "true" prevalence of nausea and vomiting than do estimates from previously reported randomized controlled trials. Several patient characteristics that predict which patients are at increased risk of developing severe symptoms were identified.

Perinatal risk for mortality and mental retardation associated with maternal urinary-tract infections

OBJECTIVE

The researchers analyzed the relationship between fetal exposure to maternal urinary tract infections (UTIs) and mental retardation or developmental delay and fetal death.

STUDY DESIGN

A retrospective cohort design was used to explore the risk for fetal death and mental retardation or developmental delay associated with exposure to maternal UTI during pregnancy.

POPULATION

Matched maternal-child pairs from the National Collaborative Perinatal Project (NCPP) from the decades of 1960 and 1970 were compared with a previous analysis of the South Carolina Medicaid Reimbursement System (Medicaid) for 1995-1996. Both data sets are representative of poor women and their children.

OUTCOMES MEASURED

The outcomes measured were fetal death and mental retardation or developmental delay in the live-born children.

RESULTS

There was an increased relative risk (RR) for mental retardation or developmental delay in the third trimester of pregnancy (RR=1.40; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.01-1.95) in the NCPP, and there was a similar risk in the Medicaid data. The third trimester relative hazard for fetal death associated with maternal UTI was 2.23 (95% CI, 1.40-3.55).

CONCLUSIONS

The findings support an association between maternal UTI and fetal death and mental retardation or developmental delay. These results confirm the importance of diligent diagnosis and treatment of maternal UTI by prenatal care providers.

Urinary tract infections during pregnancy in South Carolina

This study presents evidence that over 20 percent of pregnant women with a UTI in South Carolina did not have an antibiotic pharmacy claim within 14 days of diagnosis. Untreated maternal UTI in pregnancy was associated with a 22 percent increased risk for MR/DD in the infant compared to the risk for women who had a UTI and a pharmacy claim for an antibiotic and 31 percent increased risk compared to women who did not have a UTI. The importance of medications compliance should be emphasized in the care of pregnant women.

Urinary tract infections during pregnancy and mental retardation and developmental delay

OBJECTIVE

To investigate the association between urinary tract infections during pregnancy and mental retardation or developmental delay in infants.

METHODS

An inception cohort design was used to analyze Medicaid maternal and infant-linked records and vital records for 41,090 pregnancies from 1995-1998.

RESULTS

The relative risk (RR) for mental retardation or developmental delay among infants of mothers with diagnosed urinary tract infections but no antibiotic claims was 1.31 with a 95% confidence interval (CI) of 1. 12, 1.54 compared with the group without urinary tract infections. The RR for infants of mothers with urinary tract infections without antibiotic claims was 1.22 (95% CI 1.02, 1.46) compared with infants of mothers with urinary tract infections and antibiotic claims. The RR was significant in the first trimester (1.46, 95% CI 1.07, 1.99) and third trimester (1.41, 95% CI 1.11, 1.79) after controlling for race and gestational age at birth.

CONCLUSION

There was a statistically significant association between maternal urinary tract infections without evidence of antibiotics and mental retardation or developmental delay in infants. The relationship persisted when we assumed that over 30% of women who had antibiotic claims filled but did not take the medicine, and 40% of the women who did not have antibiotic claims did take the medication.