Moral Distress Scale for Occupational Therapists: Part 1. Instrument Development and Content Validity.

OBJECTIVE: We describe the development of an instrument to measure moral distress experienced by occupational therapists and show how its content validity was established. METHOD: Written comments (n = 78) from a previous survey using the Moral Distress Scale-Revised-Other Health Provider Adult were used to modify that instrument and create the Moral Distress Scale-Revised-Occupational Therapy-Adult Settings (MDS-R-OT[A]). The MDS-R-OT[A] was distributed to a nationwide random sample of 400 occupational therapists who rated the relevance of each item to their clinical practice. RESULTS: A scale content validity index of 81.8% was found (geriatric = 81.5%, physical disability = 80.8%, combination of the two = 85.7%). CONCLUSION: The MDS-R-OT[A] possesses acceptable content validity and is appropriate for use with occupational therapists working in geriatric or physical disability settings.

An investigation of moral distress experienced by occupational therapists.

This study used a quantitative survey design to investigate the existence of moral distress among occupational therapists. The Moral Distress Scale-Revised (MDS-R-OHPA) was distributed to a random sample of 600 members of the American Occupational Therapy Association (AOTA). The results of this explorative study found that occupational therapists reported moderate levels of moral distress with occupational therapists working in geriatric settings reporting higher levels of moral distress than occupational therapists who work in physical disability settings, although the difference was not statistically significant. However, occupational therapists who were considering leaving their current position reported the highest levels of moral distress. These initial findings are discussed as well as the need for further research.

Preparing occupational therapy students to make moral decisions.

ABSTRACT There is growing awareness that moral distress has negative consequences for health care practitioners. The preparedness of future occupational therapists to make moral decisions needs to be addressed. The purpose of this exploratory study was to examine how moral reasoning changes during occupational therapy education. A repeated cross-sectional design was used to collect data from students enrolled in a 5-year entry-level professional program. For students in this study, a type of moral reasoning based on rules and social order was preferred over a type of moral reasoning based on abstract ideals. The consequences for moral distress and implications for occupational therapy education were discussed.