Nurses' intention to care of COVID-19 patients in hospitals dedicated to infectious disease in South Korea: application of the theory of planned behavior and verification of the moderating effect of ethical nursing competence.

This study showed that the higher the ethical nursing competence level, the greater the effect of perceived behavioral control on nurses' intention to care for COVID-19 patients. Promoting ethical nursing competence is necessary for nurses who would take care of patients at the frontline of the infectious disease pandemic. Nursing managers should include ethical nursing competence in the assessment of nurses' competence and design educational programs to enhance ethical nursing competence for efficient nursing staffing during a pandemic.