The relationship between self-compassion and moral injury among healthcare workers at a provincial hospital in Vietnam

Abstract

This cross-sectional study examined the relationship between self-compassion and moral injury among healthcare workers at a provincial specialized hospital in Northern Vietnam. The study employed the Self-Compassion Scale-Short Form (SCS-SF) and the Moral Injury Symptom Scale-Healthcare Professionals (MISS-HP). The results showed that the mean SCS-SF score was 3.45, while the total MISS-HP* score (including only the two subscales of guilt/shame and condemnation) was 16.31. The findings indicated that healthcare professionals participating in the study demonstrated moderate self-compassion scores within the moderate range and reported relatively high levels of moral injury symptoms. The study also found a statistically significant difference in the level of moral injury across groups with different lengths of service and levels of self-compassion across age groups. In addition, the analysis revealed a negative correlation between self-compassion and the condemnation dimension of moral injury.