Mediating role of psychological distress in the associations between medical errors, adverse events, suicidal ideation and plan among operating room nurses in China: a cross-sectional study

OBJECTIVES: Medical errors (MEs) and adverse events (AEs) both had long-term impacts on healthcare professionals. Studies investigated the associations between MEs, AEs, psychological distress and suicidal behaviours among healthcare professionals. The aim of the current study was to explore the mediating role of psychological distress in the relationship between MEs/AEs and suicidal ideation/suicide plan among operating room nurses in China. DESIGN: A cross-sectional study. SETTING: The survey was conducted between December 2021 and January 2022 in China. PARTICIPANTS: A total of 787 operating room nurses completed the questionnaires in China. PRIMARY AND SECONDARY OUTCOME MEASURES: The primary outcome measures were MEs and AEs. Secondary outcome measures were psychological distress and suicidal behaviours. RESULTS: The results showed that 22.1% of operating room nurses were involved in MEs, while 13.9% of operating room nurses were involved in AEs. The associations between suicidal ideation (OR=1.10, p<0.001), suicide plan (OR=1.07, p<0.01) and psychological distress were significant. The associations between suicidal ideation (OR=2.76, 95% CI=1.53 to 4.97, p<0.01), suicide plan (OR=2.80, 95% CI=1.20 to 6.56, p<0.05) and MEs were significant. The associations between suicidal ideation (OR=2.27, 95% CI=1.17 to 4.40, p<0.05), suicide plan (OR=2.92, 95% CI=1.19 to 7.18, p<0.05) and AEs were significant. The psychological distress mediated the relationship between MEs/AEs and suicidal ideation/suicide plan. CONCLUSION: There were positive associations between MEs, AEs and psychological distress. Moreover, MEs and AEs were also positively associated with suicidal ideation and suicide plan. As expected, psychological distress played an important role in the relationship between MEs/AEs and suicidal ideation/suicide plan.