Ethical Problems Experienced by Psychiatric Nurses in Korea

Abstract

This study aimed to explore the ethical problems experienced by psychiatric nurses in a clinical setting. Data were collected using semistructured interviews with a purposive sample of 12 female psychiatric nurses from 3 psychiatric facilities in Korea. A thematic content analysis was used to identify ethical problems. The study illustrated 5 categories of ethical problems: moral unpreparedness and blindness, moral numbness, moral complacency, moral conflict, and moral stress. This study provides a theoretical basis of psychiatric ethical problems for developing ethical guidelines that will enable psychiatric nurses to make decisions reasonably and behave ethically in their workplace.