Akademik Veri Yönetim Sistemi
Kadın Sağlığı Hemşireliği Dergisi, cilt.8, sa.3, ss.112-124, 2022 (Hakemli Dergi)
Purpose: This study was conducted to determine the experiences of nurses and midwives in the pandemic period and their methods of coping with problems.
Design: This was a mixed-method study. It was conducted with 224 nurses and midwives who were on duty in the COVID-19 pandemic process between April and October 2020. The data of the study were collected with the online method. The questionnaire form was uploaded onto the Google Forms platform and advertised on e-mails and social media applications of the Women’s Health Nursing Association (Facebook©, WhatsApp©, and Instagram©,).
Methods: The SPSS (Windows 15.0) software was used for data analysis to give simple percentages obtained from closed-ended questions. The open-ended questions were analysed by thematic analysis.
Findings: The majority of the participants (97.3%) were women, and 73.7% of them were nurses. It was found that 43.06% of the participants worked in pandemic units. It was determined that the most frequently encountered problem was the supply of protective equipment by 52.3%. The most frequently used method to cope with problems was working with lacking materials and equipment (46%). The themes that were obtained from the open-ended questions were identified as health institution management problems, emotional experiences and expectations and recommendations.
Conclusions: In this study, the problems experienced by nurses and midwives, who are the most affected healthcare personnel from the COVID-19 pandemic process, their emotional problems, expectations and solution recommendations were listed. According to the nurses and midwives, receiving support from health institutions/hospital and nursing services management, supply of sufficient personal protective equipment and improvement of working hours, workload and work conditions carry create importance for employee and patient safety.