en Occupational Health Original Article <span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="line-height:250%"><span new="" roman="" style="font-family:" times=""><b><span style="font-size:9.0pt"><span style="line-height:250%"><span arial="" style="font-family:"><span style="color:black">Background:</span></span></span></span></b><span style="font-size:9.0pt"><span style="line-height:250%"><span arial="" style="font-family:"><span style="color:black"> Nurses&#39; direct exposure to COVID-19 patients and resulting health anxiety can threaten their performance of human and moral duties. </span></span></span></span></span></span></span><br> <span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="line-height:250%"><span new="" roman="" style="font-family:" times=""><b><span style="font-size:9.0pt"><span style="line-height:250%"><span arial="" style="font-family:"><span style="color:black">Materials and Methods:</span></span></span></span></b><span style="font-size:9.0pt"><span style="line-height:250%"><span arial="" style="font-family:"><span style="color:black"> This work was a descriptive correlational study. The statistical population was all nurses working in the intensive care unit of COVID-19 patients in Ardabil hospitals in the 2021 year, from which 150 people were selected by convenient sampling. Data were collected using the Health Anxiety Inventory, Scale for Existential Thinking, and the&nbsp;Jefferson Scale&nbsp;of&nbsp;Physician Empathy. </span></span></span></span></span></span></span><br> <span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="line-height:250%"><span new="" roman="" style="font-family:" times=""><b><span style="font-size:9.0pt"><span style="line-height:250%"><span arial="" style="font-family:"><span style="color:black">Results:</span></span></span></span></b><span style="font-size:9.0pt"><span style="line-height:250%"><span arial="" style="font-family:"><span style="color:black"> The Pearson correlation coefficient showed that the association between empathy and health anxiety was negative and significant (r = -0.47, P <0.001), and that between empathy and existential thinking was positive and significant (r = 0.31, P <0.001). Also, the correlation coefficients between health anxiety and existential thinking showed a negative and significant association between the two variables (r = -0.28, P <0.001). In addition, the moderated&nbsp;hierarchical regression analysis showed that the interactive effect of health anxiety and existential thinking on nurses&#39; empathy with patients with COVID-19 was 29%.</span></span></span></span></span></span></span><br> <span style="font-size:12pt"><span style="line-height:250%"><span new="" roman="" style="font-family:" times=""><b><span style="font-size:9.0pt"><span style="line-height:250%"><span arial="" style="font-family:"><span style="color:black">Conclusion:</span></span></span></span></b><span style="font-size:9.0pt"><span style="line-height:250%"><span arial="" style="font-family:"><span style="color:black"> According to the finding of this study, strengthening the spiritual attitude and existential thinking among the nurses of the COVID-19 ward was necessary to reduce health anxiety and its negative effects on the empathetic comunication with patients.</span></span></span></span></span></span></span><br> &nbsp; Existentialism,Health,Anxiety,Empathy,Covid-19,Nurses, 114 120 http://johe.rums.ac.ir/browse.php?a_code=A-10-251-7&slc_lang=en&sid=1 Shahriar Dargahi shahriardargahi@yahoo.com 989147015813 22400319475328460011295 No Ph.D. Student in Counseling, Dept. of Family Health, Social Determinants of Health Research Center, Ardabil University of Medical Sciences, Ardabil, Iran. Ardabil University of Medical Sciences Nader Ayadi ayadinader23@gmail.com 989108474236 22400319475328460011296 No Ph.D. Student in Counseling, Dept. of Counselling, Faculty of Educational Sciences and Psychology, University Isfahan, Isfahan, Iran. University Isfahan Ahmadreza Kiani a.kiani@uma.ac.ir 989355563540 22400319475328460011297 No Associate Prof., Dept. of Counselling, Faculty of Educational Sciences and Psychology, University of Mohaghegh Ardabili, Ardabil, Iran. University of Mohaghegh Ardabili Soliman Ahmadboukani Arezbookani@yahoo.com 989374999511 22400319475328460011298 Yes Ph.D. Student in Counseling, Dept. of Counselling, Faculty of Educational Sciences and Psychology, University of Mohaghegh Ardabili, Ardabil, Iran. University of Mohaghegh Ardabili