ABSTRACT
In response to the COVID-19 outbreak, the British government introduced a lockdown resulting in country wide restrictions on movement and socialisation. This research sought to explore individuals' experience of the first lockdown in the UK. A qualitative online survey was conducted between April and June 2020. Using a convenience sample, 29 individuals participated in the study. Data were analysed using thematic analysis. Four themes were identified: 'health and well-being', 'social connectedness and belonging', 'employment and finances' and 'personal and collective values'. Participants' experiences involved both challenges and opportunities. Participants reported challenges to their physical health, mental health, sense of connection to others as well as their employment and finances. However, they also viewed the lockdown as an opportunity to reassess their goals and values, and define a 'new normal' for society. Lockdown restrictions threatened individuals' well-being on many aspects of their lives. As anxiety, loneliness and a compromised grieving process may lead to severe mental health issues, early interventions are needed to prevent these and promote well-being. Interventions may include traditional therapies (e.g. Acceptance and Commitment Therapy), or focus specifically on developing social networks and social support (e.g. mutual help groups). These interventions may also be conducive to the experience of growth reported by some participants.
ABSTRACT
Among the many lessons that have been reinforced by the SARS-COVID-19 pandemic is the failure of our current fee-for-service health care system to either adequately respond to patient needs or offer financial sustainability. This has enhanced bipartisan interest in moving forward with value-based payment reforms. Nurses have a rich history of innovative care models that speak to their potential centrality in delivery system reforms. However, deficits in terms of educational preparation, and in some cases resistance, to considering cost alongside quality, has hindered the profession's contribution to the conversation about value-based payments and their implications for system change. Addressing this deficit will allow nurses to more fully engage in redesigning health care to better serve the physical, emotional, and economic well-being of this nation. It also has the potential to unleash nurses from the tethers of a fee-for-service system where they have been relegated to a labor cost and firmly locate nurses in a value-generating role. Nurse administrators and educators bear the responsibility for preparing nurses for this next chapter of nursing.