Investigating the Relationship between Moral Distress and Coping in Pre-Hospital Emergency Medical Services Technicians of East Azerbaijan Province in 2021

Technicians working in the emergency medical services (EMS) ward face more cases of moral distress due to the nature of their work. The consequences of moral distress include decreased self-confidence, job burnout, job dissatisfaction, and depression. One of the solutions to deal effectively with stressors is coping. The ability to adjust can be affected by much exposure to stressors.

This study aimed to investigate the relationship between moral distress and coping in technicians working in the EMS ward.

This cross-sectional study was conducted in 2021 on 494 technicians working in EMS bases in East Azerbaijan province. Sampling was performed by stratified random method. Data collection tools were the demographic characteristics questionnaire, the Corely moral distress scale (MDS), and the Littman's Cope inventory. In addition, data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and Pearson’s correlation coefficient.

The results of the study showed that the mean (SD) score of the frequency of moral distress was 47.21 (17.24), the severity of moral distress was 47.44 (19.63), and coping was 38.81 (4.82). The severity of moral distress (r= -0.14 and p=0.004) and the frequency of moral distress (r=-0.19 and p=0.001) were observed to have inverse and significant statistical relationships to coping in EMS technicians.

Considering that there is a significant inverse relationship between moral distress and coping of EMS technicians, it seems that by providing solutions to control the moral distress of these staff, it is possible to improve their adjustment and, consequently, their job capabilities.