Experiences of nursing staff caring for COVID-19 patients: exploratory study

Abstract

Introduction: Nursing staff are responsible for providing care to people in public health crises such as the COVID-19 pandemic. In previous epidemics, studies were carried out in developed countries with a quantitative approach in which it was observed that this group suffered from conditions in their mental health, although it was not possible to delve into their experiences or explore them in the Latin American context, so the aim of this study was to explore the experiences of nursing staff while caring for COVID-19 patients.Methodology: Qualitative phenomenological study that allows identifying the experiences and feelings of the informants during the care they provided to people with COVID-19.Outcomes: Two large categories were identified: 1) Emotions with three subcategories: a) Emotions at the beginning of the pandemic, b) Emotions during the pandemic and c) Emotions at the end of the pandemic; and 2) Qualities of nurses during the COVID-19 pandemic with three subcategories: a) Commitment to humanity, b) Companionship and c) Nurse-patient moments.Conclusion: The experiences of the Mexican nursing staff who cared for people with COVID-19 focus on the emotions they experienced in three moments, at the beginning: fear and uncertainty; during the pandemic: fear, anxiety, stress and depression, and at the end of the pandemic: self-confidence and satisfaction when facing the pandemic with commitment to humanity, camaraderie, satisfaction and pride in having provided care to infected people despite various obstacles.