Forty-one percent opted not to say if they would choose their profession again.  

In one of the first studies to investigate the relationship between ethics and intent to leave, Penn Nursing Assistant Professor Connie Ulrich, PhD, RN found “moral distress” led to feelings of powerlessness (32.5 percent); feeling overwhelmed (34.7 percent); frustration (52.8 percent); and fatigue (40 percent).

Ulrich noted the nurses’ desire to leave is in part fueled by experiencing more ethical stress and an inadequate level of institutional support for dealing with ethical decisions, as well as a perception of little respect for their profession.