The relationship between emotional intelligence and moral sensitivity in critical care nurses

Emotional intelligence (EI) helps nurses in managing emotions and coping with stressful situations while providing high-quality care. Moral sensitivity (MS) is crucial for identifying moral dilemmas and evaluating different decision-making options.

To determine the level of emotional intelligence and moral sensitivity amongst nurses working in a critical care unit, and to study the relationship between these factors and sociodemographic data.

A descriptive, prospective, correlational study was conducted in the critical care area of a tertiary-level university hospital. The Wong and Law Emotional Intelligence Scale (WLEIS) was used to evaluate the nurses' perceived EI. It measures four dimensions: intrapersonal perception, interpersonal perception, emotional assimilation, and emotional regulation. MS was assessed using the MS scale for nursing cares (CuSMCE-23), which measures two factors: nursing values and nursing responses. Sociodemographic data were also collected. Descriptive and inferential statistics were used, with statistical significance set at p < 0.05.

Sixty-two nurses participated in the study. The overall EI score was 5.51 (95% CI 5.37-5.64). The MS score was 93.40 (95% CI 90.83-95.96). Significant differences in total EI scores were observed in relation to the presence of dependents (p = 0.010) and working hours (p = 0.012). Concerning MS, a positive correlation was found with age (p = 0.046) and having dependents (p = 0.013). A positive correlation between EI and MS was also found (r = 0.432, p < 0.001).

Critical care nurses showed medium-high levels of EI and very high levels of MS. Factors such as age and the presence of dependents were found to influence both EI and MS. Recognizing the relationship between these variables is crucial for clinical practice. Educational programmes and further research are needed to better understand this emerging connection.