January 2019 – That pit in your stomach means you need to talk to a team member or colleague about a patient’s care.

Moral distress occurs when you think you know the right thing to do, but you feel constrained from doing it.  It is an important contributor to burnout in healthcare.

Common causes of moral distress include:

– Providing care not in the patient’s best interest
– Lack of consensus regarding the treatment plan
– Prolonging the dying process with aggressive treatment
– Lack of continuity of care, contributing to poor care

Communication is the key to reducing and relieving moral distress.

For more information contact Dr. Leslie Estep or Dr. Anita Meyer at Hospice of the Northwest,
360-814-5550, or lestep@hospicenw.org  or  ameyer@hospicenw.org