Being A Nurse in The Covid-19 Pandemic: A Qualitative Study with A Communication Dimension

Objective: In the COVID-19 pandemic, the critical role of nurses became more visible. The COVID-19 pandemic increased staff psychological stress and has put enormous pressure on healthcare systems across the World. The purpose of this study was to investigate communication challenges that come from nurses\\\' COVID-19 experiences. Methods: Qualitative study with a phenomenological approach using in-depth interviews was conducted to obtain data about the experiences of 16 nurses who actively participated in COVID-19 patient care. Data were analysed using content analysis. Results: In this study, the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on the communication of nurses with their families, healthcare personnel, patients and their relatives was focused. As a consequence of the analysis, three main themes emerged: (1) keep away, (2) conflict, (3) strengths. Conclusion: Nurses faced many communication challenges. The vast majority of them appear to be caused by fear of infection. These communication struggles can reduce a peaceful and safe work environment for a nurse and jeopardize patient care. It can also lead to psychological effects for nurses. Strategies that nursing managers could use are; being fair in patient sharing and distribution of materials, such as protective equipment, and making them feel that their feelings and thoughts are important by listening to nurses.