Perception of the Futile Care and Its Relationship With Moral Distress in Nurses of Intensive Care Units

The development of science and technology has provided more opportunities for patients to live and even receiving futile medical care or treatment with no hope of recovery. This process leads to awkward experiences and moral distress in nurses who frequently deliver with such care. Objective: This study aimed to determine the perception of futile care and its relationship with moral distress in nurses working in intensive care units Materials and Methods: This is a cross-sectional study conducted on 155 nurses working in Intensive Care Units (ICUs) employed in educational-therapeutic centers and hospitals of Guilan Province, Iran. They were selected by convenience sampling method. The study data were collected using the researcher-made questionnaire and Corley moral distress questionnaire. The obtained data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and inferential statistics the Kolmogorov-Smirnov test, nonparametric Mann-Whitney U, Kruskal-Wallis, Fisher exact and Backward logistic regression model. Results: The Mean±SD age of the samples was 34.71±6.68 years; their Mean±SD work experience was 10.24±5.63 years, and the Mean±SD work experience in the ICU was 6.76±4.64 years. The results indicated that their Mean±SD perception of futile care was 63±7, and their Mean±SD moral distress was 92±54. The score of moral distress showed a low but significant and positive correlation with the legal and organizational aspects of futile care (r=0. 279, P=0.001) and the total score of perception futile care (r=0.2, P=0.012). In the multivariate analysis based on the logistic regression model of futile care, only the relationship between the legal and organizational score in care had a significant relationship with moral distress. So that by increasing one unit in the legal and organizational aspect of care, the chances of scoring above the mean of moral distress increases 1.2 times (P=0.0001, 95% CI; 1.077-1.324). Conclusion: Perhaps by familiarizing nurses with the legal and organizational nature of patient’s care, the moral distress of caring can be reduced.