Background and Objectives: Spiritual intelligence is an important dimension of intelligence that helps an individual adapt to the environment and choose the right path. In stressful situations and ethical dilemmas in the clinical environment, this intelligence plays a special role. The present study aimed to investigate the relationship between spiritual intelligence and moral distress in anesthesia and operating room students of Alborz University of Medical Sciences in 2024.
Materials and Methods: This research is a descriptive-correlational study conducted on 150 students of anesthesia and operating room at Alborz University of Medical Sciences in 2024. After obtaining ethical permission and informed consent from the participants, the Spiritual Intelligence and Moral Distress Questionnaire was distributed to the students with the necessary training, and 136 questionnaires were completed.
Results: In this study, 68.4% of respondents were women and 58.8% of their field of study was operating room. The mean spiritual intelligence was 137.11, which was higher than the theoretical mean of 126. The mean moral distress was 59.62, which was lower than the theoretical mean of 100. A negative and significant relationship was observed between spiritual intelligence and moral distress, meaning that an increase in spiritual intelligence was associated with a decrease in moral distress.
Conclusion: Increasing spiritual intelligence can reduce moral distress in students. Therefore, measures such as placing special emphasis on education regarding ethical issues and spiritual intelligence within educational-medical centers, as well as conducting training courses, can be effective in reducing moral distress in clinical settings.