Table 1.
Prevalence and factor loadings of COVID‐19 moral distress items
| Prevalence, n (%) a | Family‐related items | Infection‐related items | Work‐related items | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Feel torn between desire/duty to help patients versus loved ones (family, friends, etc) | 1650 (64.0%) | 0.761 | 0.059 | 0.159 |
| Worry about how COVID‐19 might affect ability to care for children/dependents | 1371 (53.2%) | 0.752 | 0.094 | 0.091 |
| Feel that those with whom you live are fearful to be near you due to possible COVID‐19 exposure at work | 1360 (52.7%) | 0.738 | 0.11 | 0.087 |
| Worry about infecting family with COVID‐19 | 2265 (87.8%) | 0.566 | 0.476 | 0.169 |
| Worry about how COVID‐19 will affect personal relationships | 1778 (68.9%) | 0.477 | 0.294 | 0.289 |
| Worry about not being able to visit or assist loved ones who are ill or become ill with COVID‐19 | 2159 (83.7%) | 0.435 | 0.404 | 0.333 |
| Worry about infecting patients with COVID‐19 | 1814 (70.3%) | 0.115 | 0.911 | 0.213 |
| Worry about infecting colleagues with COVID‐19 | 1902 (73.7%) | 0.164 | 0.904 | 0.242 |
| Worry about not being able to do enough for COVID‐19 patients | 2116 (82.0%) | 0.112 | 0.176 | 0.854 |
| Worry about not having enough knowledge or experience to take adequate care of COVID‐19 patients | 1885 (73.1%) | 0.118 | 0.154 | 0.832 |
| Worry about having to make extremely difficult decisions involving prioritizing health/survival of one COVID‐19 patient over another | 1473 (57.1%) | 0.285 | 0.274 | 0.613 |
Note: Items beginning with “worry” were assessed using the stem: “How much do you worry abouat the following work‐related concerns?” and a five‐point scale ranging from “Not worried at all” to “Worried nearly all of the time.” The item “Feel torn between desire/duty to help patients versus loved ones (family, friends, etc)” was assessed using the stem: “In the last week, how often have you felt torn between your desire/duty to help your patients and your desire/duty to loved ones (family, friends, etc.)?” and a five‐point scale ranging from “None of the time” to “All of the time.” “Feel that those with whom you live are fearful to be near you due to possible COVID‐19 exposure at work” was assessed using the stem: “In the last week, how often have you felt that those who live with you are fearful to be near you due to your possible COVID exposure at work?” and a five‐point scale ranging from “None of the time” to “All of the time.” Family‐related factor: eigenvalue = 4.61, 41.9% cumulative variance explained; Cronbach's α = .78.Infection‐related factor: eigenvalue = 1.37, 12.5% variance explained; Cronbach's α = .93.Work‐related factor: eigenvalue = 1.03, 9.4% of variance; Cronbach's α = .75. Bolded values indicate factors loadings >0.40.
Abbreviation: COVID, coronavirus disease.
Positive item endorsement was operationalized as reporting feeling “sometimes worried,” “often worried,” or “worried nearly all of the time;” or “some of the time,” “most of the time,” or “all of the time.”