Emergency clinicians' knowledge, preparedness and experiences of managing COVID-19 during the 2020 global pandemic in Australian healthcare settings.
Australas Emerg Care
; 24(3): 186-196, 2021 Sep.
Article
in English
| MEDLINE | ID: covidwho-1157136
ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND:
Emergency clinicians have a crucial role during public health emergencies and have been at the frontline during the COVID-19 pandemic. This study examined the knowledge, preparedness and experiences of Australian emergency nurses, emergency physicians and paramedics in managing COVID-19.METHODS:
A voluntary cross-sectional study of members of the College of Emergency Nursing Australasia, the Australasian College for Emergency Medicine, and the Australasian College of Paramedicine was conducted using an online survey (June-September 2020).RESULTS:
Of the 159 emergency nurses, 110 emergency physicians and 161 paramedics, 67.3-78% from each group indicated that their current knowledge of COVID-19 was 'good to very good'. The most frequently accessed source of COVID-19 information was from state department of health websites. Most of the respondents in each group (77.6-86.4%) received COVID-19 specific training and education, including personal protective equipment (PPE) usage. One-third of paramedics reported that their workload 'had lessened' while 36.4-40% of emergency nurses and physicians stated that their workload had 'considerably increased'. Common concerns raised included disease transmission to family, public complacency, and PPE availability.CONCLUSIONS:
Extensive training and education and adequate support helped prepare emergency clinicians to manage COVID-19 patients. Challenges included inconsistent and rapidly changing communications and availability of PPE.Keywords
Full text:
Available
Collection:
International databases
Database:
MEDLINE
Main subject:
Attitude of Health Personnel
/
Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice
/
Infection Control
/
Clinical Competence
/
Emergency Service, Hospital
/
COVID-19
Type of study:
Observational study
/
Prognostic study
/
Qualitative research
/
Randomized controlled trials
Limits:
Adult
/
Female
/
Humans
/
Male
/
Middle aged
Country/Region as subject:
Oceania
Language:
English
Journal:
Australas Emerg Care
Year:
2021
Document Type:
Article
Affiliation country:
J.auec.2021.03.008
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