Degree Name
PhD (Doctor of Philosophy)
Program
Nursing
Date of Award
5-2024
Committee Chair or Co-Chairs
Jean Croce Hemphill
Committee Members
Susan Epps, Robin Foreman, Katherine Hall
Abstract
Limited research exists about the experiences of nurses’ caring for patients during the COVID-19 pandemic post hoc. To understand nurses’ realities of caring for patients with COVID-19, I aimed to understand the lived experience of nurses caring for patients with COVID-19 in the United States. A qualitative design with a hermeneutic phenomenological methodology was used. Sixteen participants were recruited via purposive sampling, augmented with snowball sampling. Data were collected through unstructured interviews and were analyzed using Braun and Clarke’s Reflexive Thematic Analysis. Nurses’ experiences of caring for patients with COVID-19 in the U.S. were consolidated into four themes: “a living hell”; “rationing patient safety”; “mental aftermath of the war zone”; and “post-pandemic pride”. Nurses provided patient care amidst challenging environments of limited to no resources, with extensive, large-scale critically ill patients, and patient deaths. Due to overwhelming patient care demands, nurses were unable to provide safe patient care to everyone in need, resulting in patient deterioration and death. These experiences caused nurses to endure maladaptive mental effects, such as compassion fatigue and moral suffering, which can threaten the safety of patients. Despite these undesirable results, nurses continued to provide patient care and expressed feelings of pride in the profession of nursing for surviving the COVID-19 pandemic. However, this study demonstrates the persistent impacts on nurses’ abilities to provide safe care after the crisis years. Support for nurses is recommended to preserve patient safety.
Document Type
Dissertation - embargo
Recommended Citation
Barre, Jessica, "The Lived Experience of Nurses in Caring for Patients with COVID-19" (2024). Electronic Theses and Dissertations. Paper 4368. https://dc.etsu.edu/etd/4368
Copyright
Copyright by the authors.
Included in
Critical Care Nursing Commons, Family Practice Nursing Commons, Geriatric Nursing Commons, Maternal, Child Health and Neonatal Nursing Commons, Nursing Administration Commons, Occupational and Environmental Health Nursing Commons, Other Nursing Commons, Pediatric Nursing Commons, Psychiatric and Mental Health Nursing Commons, Public Health and Community Nursing Commons