title: Personal factors affecting ethical performance in healthcare workers during disasters and mass casualty incidents in Iran: a qualitative study.
abstract: In emergencies and disasters, ethics are affected by both personal and organizational factors. Given the lack of organizational ethical guidelines in the disaster management system in Iran, the present study was conducted to explain the personal factors affecting ethics and ethical behaviors among disaster healthcare workers. The present qualitative inquiry was conducted using conventional content analysis to analyze the data collected from 21 in-depth unstructured interviews with healthcare workers with an experience of attending one or more fields of disaster. According to the data collected, personal factors can be classified into five major categories, including personal characteristics such as age and gender, personal values, threshold of tolerance, personal knowledge and reflective thinking. Without ethical guidelines, healthcare workers are intensely affected by the emotional climate of the event and guided by their beliefs. A combination of personal characteristics, competences and expertise thus form the basis of ethical conduct in disaster healthcare workers.
authors.affiliation: Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
authors.forename: Mehrzad
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Kiani
authors.affiliation: Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran. fadavima@yahoo.com.
authors.forename: Mohsen
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Fadavi
authors.affiliation: University of Social Welfare and Rehabilitation Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
authors.forename: Hamidreza
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Khankeh
authors.affiliation: Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
authors.forename: Fariba
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Borhani
mesh_terms: D000367:Age Factors; D001291:Attitude of Health Personnel; D003695:Delivery of Health Care / Q000941:ethics* / Q000592:standards*; D004190:Disasters; D006801:Humans; D007407:Interviews as Topic; D007492:Iran; D019359:Knowledge; D054527:Mass Casualty Incidents; D009014:Morals; D017410:Practice Guidelines as Topic; D036301:Qualitative Research; D012737:Sex Factors
keywords: Disasters; Ethical performance; Healthcare workers; Mass casualty incidents