Abstract
[This is an excerpt.] Challenges well met can also bring rewards—they are linked to the satisfactions of medicine. But as the profession draws deeply on its resources to respond to covid-19, a new concept is entering the mainstream: moral distress. And it is shining a light on the deepening structural afflictions of medicine in the UK, problems that predated covid and, unless they are resolved, will endure long beyond it. Moral distress is a psychological harm arising when people are forced to make, or witness, decisions or actions that contradict their core moral values. While exposure to the suffering of others can lead to distress, it is not necessarily moral distress. But if serious and sustained resource constraints mean doctors cannot meet patients’ needs, it can open the door to moral distress. If you know that delays to treatment will likely lead to serious harms, consider the effect of repeatedly being forced to place patients on ever lengthening waiting lists. Moral distress arises in the gap between what professional judgment dictates should be done and what healthcare systems permit. It is also associated with powerlessness—the impossibility of altering the situation so that professional acts can accord with professional values. [To read more, click View Resource.]
