Identifying potentially morally injurious events from the Veteran perspective: A qualitative descriptive study

Abstract

LAY SUMMARY Current conceptualizations of potentially morally injurious events (PMIEs) emphasize war atrocities (e.g., killing of children or civilians, witnessing abuse of prisoners of war). Additional research on PMIEs could inform provision of patient-centred care in pursuit of healing for those experiencing moral injury. The field would benefit from an operationalization of PMIEs that is not only grounded in empirical data and meaningful to clinicians but also accounts for the perspectives of the Veterans who experienced PMIEs. This study sought to gain a more in-depth understanding of and explore Veterans’ experiences surrounding PMIEs.