Practicing nurses need confidence in confronting morally complex situations to reduce the potential for moral injury, and thus prevent moral distress and burnout (Rushton, Batcheller, & Schroeder, 2015). To gain this self-confidence, nurses need to identify appropriate levels of moral responsibility in situations of moral ambiguity or complexity. Understanding the concept of moral resilience will be helpful in creating prevention and intervention strategies. An illustrative case, table of definitions, and attributes of moral resilience are described, with discussion of how leaders can support resilience by building an ethical workplace.
