Date
1-16-2025
Department
School of Behavioral Sciences
Degree
Doctor of Philosophy in Psychology (PhD)
Chair
Rachel Piferi
Keywords
Moral Injury, PTSD, Burnout, Spirituality, Healthcare, Ukraine, Chaplaincy, COVID 19
Disciplines
Psychology
Recommended Citation
Stenger, Rodger L., "Caring for Ukrainian Healthcare Professionals in Wartime: Moral Injury and Psycho-Spiritual Intervention" (2025). Doctoral Dissertations and Projects. 6466.
https://digitalcommons.liberty.edu/doctoral/6466
Abstract
This mixed-methods study examined the prevalence of Moral Injury (MI) among Ukrainian healthcare professionals (UHCPs) and their willingness to engage in evidence-based, psycho-spiritual interventions targeting MI that has resulted from the Russian invasion and the COVID-19 pandemic. MI is a psychological construct resulting from actions that violate an individual’s moral code and can overlap with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) symptoms. While MI has been extensively researched in the military, it has gained attention in healthcare settings. Utilizing the Moral Injury Symptom Scale-Healthcare Professional (MISS-HP), this study quantitatively identified a moderate prevalence of MI among doctors and nurses in Ukraine. The Centrality of Religiosity scale highlighted strong spiritual and religious predictors among the sample population. Qualitative semi-structured focus group interviews further explored their lived experiences with MI and their perceptions of chaplaincy and behavioral health-led psycho-spiritual interventions, which have shown meaningful results in PTSD reduction among United States Veterans. This study offers timely insights that may improve the well-being of healthcare workers in Ukraine, and it contributes to the growing body of literature addressing MI in the global healthcare workforce.
