ABSTRACT
Introduction: The Covid-19 pandemic has been increasing nurses’ exposure to occupational stress and despite the relevance of organizational strategies, coping strategies may also play role in stress reduction. This study aimed to analyze coping strategies of hospital nurses to deal with occupational stress during the Covid-19 pandemic. Materials and Methods: Qualitative-exploratory study performed with hospital nurses in Brazil. We carried out individual online interviews following an open-ended questions script. Data were recorded, transcripted, and analyzed using thematic analysis. All ethical concerns were respected. Results: Based on the theoretical framework, we found three categories: 1) Problem-focused coping strategies: proper use of PPE;better workplace organization;dealing with the problem in work and seeking help from experts to do it;not postponing activities that can be done at the moment;establishing effective communication;reflecting on stress events;reducing workloads when possible. 2) Emotion-focused coping strategies: use of prescribed drugs for depression and anxiety;getting support from families and friends;increase of food and alcohol consumption;watching non work-related movies and TV series;reading;practicing physical activities;making handicrafts;singing and listening to music;praying;enjoying quality time with family and pets. 3) Meaning-focused coping: spirituality;playing with coworkers to relieve the tension;focussing on patients care and on the bright side of things. Conclusions: Coping strategies help nurses to stay at work despite precarious workplace conditions and safety.
ABSTRACT
Introduction Occupational stress is one of the negative factors present in nursing work, especially in the hospital context;that factor was exasperated by the Covid-19 pandemic. Organizational strategies are very useful to reduce stress at work, individual coping behaviors can also contribute to the understanding of this factor. Objective This study aims to understand coping strategies of hospital nurses with occupational stress in the Covid-19 pandemic context. Method This is a qualitative, descriptive and exploratory study, which was developed at a university hospital located in the state of São Paulo, Brazil. The target population was male and female nurses who were employed in the research hospital. Data were collected through virtual individual interviews, based on a previously defined semi-structured questionnaire, and analyzed according to thematic content analysis. Intentional sampling was used and the participants were recruited until data saturation. The project was approved by study scenario and Ethics Committee for Research with Human Beings at Federal University of São Carlos;all ethical precepts were observed. Partial Results Thirteen nurses participated in the data collection: 10 (76.92%) women and 3 (23.07%) men, aged between 31 and 55 years old. Working as a nurse: 1 (7.69%) worked between 1 to 5 years, 3 (23.07%) between 5.1 to 10 years, 6 (46.15%) between 10.1 to 20 years and 3 (23.07%)> 20 years. For the duration of work experience at the studied institution: 1 (7.69%) < 1 year, 9 (69.23%) between 1 to 5 years and 3 (23.07%) between 5.1 to 10 years. It was expected, with the results of this research, to understand the coping strategies used by hospital nurses to cope with occupational stress in the current pandemic scenario of COVID-19.