COVID-19: Protocol and Checklist for Nursing Care Management at Urgent Care Units.

BACKGROUND: The 24 h urgent care units (24 h UCU) in Brazil are the main pre-admission hospital process of the public healthcare system and constitute an intermediate modality between primary care and hospital care. These units also provide care in cases of less severity that are not considered urgent. This study aimed to create and validate the content of a graphic protocol and checklist for the nursing care management of patients with a suspicion or confirmation of infection by COVID-19 at urgent care units. METHODS: A methodological study was carried out in three phases: construct of items and dimensions of the checklist; evaluation of the checklist by specialists for content validation; and construct and content validation of the graphic protocol. RESULTS: The checklist was evaluated by nine specialists. Eight items received suggestions for changes. Items with a content validity index ≥0.83 were maintained. With regard to content validity, despite the satisfactory level of agreement, the specialists suggested some changes in the writing of eight items. The graphic protocol was evaluated by six specialists and had an overall content validity of 0.97. CONCLUSION: The checklist with 44 items and three dimensions (Management, Biosafety and Care) and the protocol achieved a satisfactory standard of content validity for use at 24 h urgent care units. This protocol can contribute to the standardization and guidance of nursing actions in suspected and confirmed cases of COVID-19 at urgent care units, ensuring safe care based on scientific evidence.

Burnout and quality of life in nursing staff during the COVID-19 pandemic.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the association between burnout and quality of life among nursing staff at intensive care units during the new coronavirus pandemic and identify the influence of sociodemographic variables. METHODS: A cross-sectional study was conducted with 109 nursing staff members at intensive care units of a public hospital in Brazil. Data collection involved the administration of a sociodemographic questionnaire as well as the WHOQOL-Bref and Oldenburg Burnout Inventory. RESULTS: The participants presented a high state of burnout and a low score in the physical domain of the quality-of-life instrument. Men (p = 0.037), income (p = 0.011) and burnout (p < 0.001) independently influenced quality-of-life (p < 0.01). Age, being a nursing technician and working at two hospitals exerted an influence on burnout status (p < 0.05). A negative association was found between quality of life and burnout (p < 0.01). CONCLUSION: Our findings showed that burnout due to occupational circumstances affected negatively the quality of life perceptions of nursing staff working at intensive care units during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Scale of Adherence to Good Hospital Practices for COVID-19: Psychometric Properties.

To avoid hospital transmission, all COVID-19 prevention measures should be followed. This study aimed to evaluate the psychometric properties of a novel scale developed to assess adherence to good practices for COVID-19 in the hospital setting. A methodological cross-sectional study was conducted at a public hospital in the state of São Paulo, Brazil, with 307 healthcare providers. Data were collected using a questionnaire addressing sociodemographic/occupational data and the Adherence to Standard Precautions for COVID-19 scale. Cronbach's alpha coefficients and the intraclass correlation coefficients were used to measure internal consistency and temporal stability (test-retest analysis), respectively. Concurrent validity was evaluated using Spearman's correlation coefficients between the scores of the overall scale and its domains. Factorial structure was evaluated using exploratory factor analysis and goodness-of-fit of the model was tested using confirmatory factor analysis. Cronbach's alpha coefficients for the scale and its domains were higher than 0.7, except the psychosocial domain (0.61). All intraclass correlation coefficients were higher than 0.7. Strong correlations were found between the total score and the personal (0.84) and organizational (0.90) domains of the scale and a good correlation was found with the psychosocial domain (0.66). The fit of the multidimensional model was satisfactory for all parameters and the three-dimensional structure of the scale was confirmed by the fit of the factor loadings. The novel scale is a valid and reliable instrument for assessing adherence to good hospital practices for COVID-19.

Creation and content validity of a scale for assessing adherence to good practices for COVID-19.

OBJECTIVE: to create a scale for assessing the adherence of healthcare providers to good practices for COVID-19 in the hospital setting and determine its content and face validity. METHODS: A methodological study was developed in three sequential phases: creation of items and domains based on a literature review and administration of the questionnaire to 16 nursing professionals; assessment of content and face validity by experts; and semantic analysis. RESULTS: The 51-item scale was submitted to the evaluation of seven experts. Items with a content validity index ≥ 0.83 were maintained. During the semantic analysis performed by the administration of the scale to 37 healthcare providers, no suggestions for changes were made and the comprehension rate was 87%. CONCLUSIONS: the 47-item instrument with three dimensions (personal, organizational, and psychosocial) achieved satisfactory content and face validity, meeting the parameters established in the literature.