Exploring the experiences of operating room health care professionals' from the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic

Abstract

Background The operating room nurses have encountered several challenges during the current COVID-19 Pandemic, which subsequently impact their clinical performance. The present study aimed to investigate the experiences of operating room health care professionals' regarding the COVID-19 pandemic challenges in southern Iran. Methods This is a descriptive qualitative study. The required data were collected using in-depth and semi-structured interviews. Accordingly, 19 operating room health care professions were included in this study through purposive sampling. The data were collected from February 2020 to August 2021 and then analyzed using the Granheim and Lundman’s method. Results Three main themes and 9 sub-themes were presented in this study. They included: 1- Challenges of applying protocols and standards of care in the COVID-19 pandemic in the operating room (lack of specific guidelines regarding care protocols and standards for crisis management of Covid-19 in the operating room and impossibility of keeping social distance in the operating room). 2- Professional challenges (tedious and hard work, professional burnout, lack of adequate support by the managers and lack of personal protective equipment). 3-Psychological crises (indescribable anxiety and worry, parenting stress, and weakened resilience). Conclusion Based on the findings of the present study, it was indicated that lack of a specific guideline in the COVID-19 pandemic led to a sense of indecision and confusion among operating room staff. In this regard, performing tedious tasks, feelings of tiredness and exhaustion, lack of support by the authorities, and lack of access to adequate facilities and equipment were reported as the professional challenges of the healthcare staff in the current COVID-19 pandemic, which consequently affected the quality of care and patient’s safety. It seems that hospital officials can use the results reported in this study for efficient planning and effective management during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Experiences of Operating Room Nurses During COVID-19 Pandemic: A Qualitative Study

“…In the study by Gül et al 39 the participating nurses reported that some of the patients who underwent surgery did not undergo PCR testing. The study by Mohammadi et al 40 found that many patients did not have PCR tests before undergoing surgery but were determined to be COVID positive after the surgery. The same study reported that even simple masks were not available for the OR nurses.…”

Normalization of Deviance Is Contrary to the Principles of High Reliability

“…Nurses reported exhaustion; inadequate support from leaders; and inadequate resources, including staff members and equipment. 23 Further, the increased demand for additional nurses and consequent of travel nurses negatively affected safety. Although the use of travel nurses was warranted during the COVID-19 pandemic, safety cultures in facilities were affected by the disruption of clinical care; travel nurses not receiving as much safety education as their resident nurse counterparts; and thwarted work relationships at the facilities, which led to communication errors.…”

“…For example, a 2021 study aimed at exploring OR personnel's experiences during the COVID‐19 pandemic showed that quality of patient care was affected, stemming from confusion among OR staff members (eg, unpredictability, changes in processes, destabilized workplaces). Nurses reported exhaustion; inadequate support from leaders; and inadequate resources, including staff members and equipment 23 . Further, the increased demand for additional nurses and consequent influx of travel nurses negatively affected safety.…”

Variations in operating room staff compliance with mandatory daily electronic COVID-19 symptom screening

“…This variation may be explained in part by differences in rule adherence between physicians and nurses, 8 but suggests that hospitals implementing electronic symptom screening may not automatically comply with relevant government mandates to screen all staff. This variation also likely reduces any efficacy of the system for detecting infections, 5 for epidemiological surveillance, 9 or for reassurance against the stress 10 caused by an inability to socially distance in the operating room.…”