Abstract
Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has been a defining event for the next generation of the nursing workforce. Complex pandemic practice environments have raised concerns for the preparation and support of novice nurses, even as a multitude of nurses leave the profession.
Purpose: Researchers sought to examine nursing students' and new graduate nurses' impressions of the nursing profession in contrasting regions of New York State during the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Methods: Inductive content analysis was performed on narrative text responses (n = 295) drawn from a larger multisite mixed-methods survey.
Results: Five subconcepts were abstracted, leading to the main concept of shocked moral distress.
Conclusion: Nursing students and new graduate nurses have experienced high levels of moral distress but remain committed to the profession. Building moral resilience, fostering ethical decision making, and implementing protective policies can reduce the incidence of moral distress.