Cynda Hylton Rushton

About

Dr. Cynda Hylton Rushton is the Anne and George L. Bunting Professor of Clinical Ethics at the Johns Hopkins Berman Institute of Bioethics and the Johns Hopkins School of Nursing. She is an international leader in bioethics and nursing, with a focus on moral distress, moral resilience, and ethical practice in healthcare. Dr. Rushton co-chairs the Johns Hopkins Hospital’s Ethics Committee and Consultation Service and is a founding member of the Berman Institute. Her work includes co-leading national initiatives such as the first National Nursing Ethics Summit and the State of the Science Initiative on transforming moral distress into moral resilience in nursing. She has contributed to the development of frameworks and tools to support ethical practice, including the Rushton Moral Resilience Scale and the Mindful Ethical Practice and Resilience Academy (MEPRA). Her research emphasizes cultivating resilience among clinicians, addressing moral suffering, and fostering a culture of ethical healthcare. Dr. Rushton is also recognized for her expertise in palliative and end-of-life care, having led various national projects and served on influential committees, including the Institute of Medicine’s Committee on Increasing Organ Donation. She has received numerous awards for her leadership and research, including the Marguerite Rodgers Kinney Distinguished Career Award and the Milestone Award for Bioethics Leadership. Her academic background includes a doctorate in nursing with a…

Research topics

• Medicine
• Nursing
• Clinical psychology
• Political Science
• Computer Science
• Virology
• Psychology
• Business
• Pediatrics
• Intensive care medicine

Selected publications

• The new frontline: exploring the links between moral distress, moral resilience and mental health in healthcare workers during the COVID-19 pandemic

  BMC Psychiatry · 2022 · 183 citations

  BACKGROUND: Global health crises, such as the COVID-19 pandemic, confront healthcare workers (HCW) with increased exposure to potentially morally distressing events. The pandemic has provided an opportunity to explore the links between moral distress, moral resilience, and emergence of mental health symptoms in HCWs. METHODS: A total of 962 Canadian healthcare workers (88.4% female, 44.6 + 12.8 years old) completed an online survey during the first COVID-19 wave in Canada (between April 3rd and…

  DOI

• Social, financial and psychological stress during an emerging pandemic: observations from a population survey in the acute phase of COVID-19

  BMJ Open · 2020 · 153 citations

  INTRODUCTION: The negative impacts of COVID-19 have rippled through every facet of society. Understanding the multidimensional impacts of this pandemic is crucial to identify the most critical needs and to inform targeted interventions. This population survey study aimed to investigate the acute phase of the COVID-19 outbreak in terms of perceived threats and concerns, occupational and financial impacts, social impacts and stress between 3 April and 15 May 2020. METHODS: 6040 participants are in…

  DOI

• Palliative Care Early in the Care Continuum among Patients with Serious Respiratory Illness: An Official ATS/AAHPM/HPNA/SWHPN Policy Statement

  American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine · 2022 · 114 citations

  This multisociety policy statement establishes a framework for early palliative care in serious respiratory illness and provides guidance for pulmonary-critical care clinicians and policymakers for its proactive integration.

  DOI

• Operational Recommendations for Scarce Resource Allocation in a Public Health Crisis

  CHEST Journal · 2020 · 51 citations

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Clinicians and Professional Societies COVID-19 Impact Assessment: Lessons Learned and Compelling Needs

  NAM Perspectives · 2021 · 30 citations

  The National Academies are responding to the COVID-19 pandemic. Visit our resource center >> Introduction Clinicians—who consist of physicians, nurses, pharmacists, and other allied health professionals involved in […]

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

Frequent coauthors

• Gail Geller

  Johns Hopkins Medicine

  90 shared

• Douglas B. White

  University of Pittsburgh

  68 shared

• Sam D. Shemie

  Montreal Children's Hospital

  65 shared

• Thomas A. Nakagawa

  University of Florida

  65 shared

• Thomas P. Bleck

  New York Medical College

  64 shared

• Susan L. Bratton

  64 shared

• Mudit Mathur

  64 shared

• Sandralee Blosser

  64 shared

Awards & honors

• Hastings Center Fellow
• Fellow of the American Academy of Nursing
• Marguerite Rodgers Kinney Distinguished Career Award
• Distinguished Researcher award from American Association of…
• American Association of Critical-Care Nurses Pioneering Spir…

Similar researchers at Johns Hopkins University

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