The relationship between the ethical sensitivity and compassion fatique of pediatric nurses

The fact that Pediatric nurses distinguish the ethical problems encountered in the treatment process of the children they care for and have the ability to make ethical decisions by solving the problems requires high ethical sensitivity. On the other hand, one of the important emotions experienced by nurses during the care service given to children is compassion. The sense of compassion felt by nurses turns into compassion fatigue, which has negative effects and consequences over time. The aim of this study was to determine the relationship between the ethical sensitivity of Pediatric nurses and compassion fatigue. Within the scope of this purpose, various factors affecting ethical sensitivity and compassion fatigue have been revealed. This descriptive and cross-sectional study was conducted with 110 Pediatric nurses in Çorum province and its districts between November 2021 and May 2022 and who agreed to participate in the study. Research data were collected with "Personal Information Form", "Moral Sensitivity Questionnaire (MSQ)" and "Compassion Fatigue-Short Scale (CF-SC)". The data were analyzed using the SPSS program. Independent Samples T-Test for comparing numerical data between two independent groups, One-Way Anova for comparing numerical data between more than two independent groups, Pearson Correlation for correlation analysis between total scores Coefficient test was used. Statistical significance was accepted as p<0.05. It was determined that the total scores of nurses' MSQ and CF-SC were 70.5±17.7 and 86.8±13.9, respectively. Ethical sensitivity levels of nurses do not differ significantly according to age, gender, marital status, education status, years of working in nursing, number of shifts per month, unit worked, desire to change profession, status of receiving ethics training, knowing the definition of the concept of ethical sensitivity, and knowing the definition of compassion fatigue. (p>0.05). Ethical sensitivity levels of nurses differ significantly according to the years of working in the pediatric clinic, the institution where they work, their love for the profession, and their willingness to choose the profession (p<0.05). Nurses' gender, marital status, educational status, working years in the pediatric clinic, number of shifts per month, unit worked, love for the profession, willingness to choose the profession, desire to change profession, receiving ethics training, knowing the definition of the concept of ethical sensitivity, knowing the definition of the concept of compassion fatigue. Compassion fatigue levels do not differ significantly (p>0.05). Compassion fatigue of nurses differs significantly according to age group, working year and institution (p<0.05). There is a low, negative and significant relationship between nurses' ethical sensitivity scores and compassion fatigue scores (r=-0.193, p<0.05). As a result, ethical sensitivity and compassion fatigue levels of Pediatric nurses were found to be high. As the ethical sensitivity of nurses increases, their compassion fatigue also increases. It is recommended to increase the awareness of nurses about the professional and personal effects and consequences of ethical sensitivity and compassion fatigue, and to provide psychological counseling support for nurses experiencing compassion fatigue.