Moral Distress among Italian nurses and its association with Burnout, Intention to Leave the job and Job Satisfaction: a National observational study protocol

This project presents a national cross‑sectional observational study investigating Moral Distress among Italian nurses and its associations with Burnout, Job Satisfaction, and Intention to Leave the job or the profession. Nurses registered with the Italian Nursing Board (Ordine delle Professioni Infermieristiche, OPI) and providing direct patient care in hospital, community, residential, or outpatient settings will be recruited through provincial OPI using a standardized national dissemination strategy. Data will be collected anonymously via an online EU Survey questionnaire including sociodemographic variables, the Italian Moral Distress Scale - Revised (MDS ‑ R), Maslach Burnout Inventory - Human Services Survey (MBI ‑ HSS), Job Satisfaction Survey (JSS), and Intention to Leave items. The aim of this study is to examine Moral Distress among Italian nurses registered with the OPI, describing its level, frequency, and intensity across different care settings. Furthermore, the study seeks to analyse how Moral Distress relates to Burnout, Intention to Leave the job or the profession, and Job Satisfaction, while also exploring its associations with sociodemographic and professional characteristics.