Front-line Nursing Home Staff Experiences During the COVID-19 Pandemic.
J Am Med Dir Assoc
; 22(1): 199-203, 2021 01.
Article
en En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-33321076
ABSTRACT
OBJECTIVE:
The Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic is an unprecedented challenge for nursing homes, where staff have faced rapidly evolving circumstances to care for a vulnerable resident population. Our objective was to document the experiences of these front-line health care professionals during the pandemic.DESIGN:
Electronic survey of long-term care staff. This report summarizes qualitative data from open-ended questions for the subset of respondents working in nursing homes. SETTING ANDPARTICIPANTS:
A total of 152 nursing home staff from 32 states, including direct-care staff and administrators.METHODS:
From May 11 through June 4, 2020, we used social media and professional networks to disseminate an electronic survey with closed- and open-ended questions to a convenience sample of long-term care staff. Four investigators identified themes from qualitative responses for staff working in nursing homes.RESULTS:
Respondents described ongoing constraints on testing and continued reliance on crisis standards for extended use and reuse of personal protective equipment. Administrators discussed the burden of tracking and implementing sometimes confusing or contradictory guidance from numerous agencies. Direct-care staff expressed fears of infecting themselves and their families, and expressed sincere empathy and concern for their residents. They described experiencing burnout due to increased workloads, staffing shortages, and the emotional burden of caring for residents facing significant isolation, illness, and death. Respondents cited the presence or lack of organizational communication and teamwork as important factors influencing their ability to work under challenging circumstances. They also described the demoralizing impact of negative media coverage of nursing homes, contrasting this with the heroic public recognition given to hospital staff. CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS Nursing home staff described working under complex and stressful circumstances during the COVID-19 pandemic. These challenges have added significant burden to an already strained and vulnerable workforce and are likely to contribute to increased burnout, turnover, and staff shortages in the long term.Palabras clave
Texto completo:
1
Colección:
01-internacional
Base de datos:
MEDLINE
Asunto principal:
Agotamiento Profesional
/
Rol de la Enfermera
/
COVID-19
/
Relaciones Enfermero-Paciente
/
Casas de Salud
/
Personal de Enfermería
Tipo de estudio:
Prognostic_studies
/
Qualitative_research
Límite:
Female
/
Humans
/
Male
Idioma:
En
Revista:
J Am Med Dir Assoc
Asunto de la revista:
HISTORIA DA MEDICINA
/
MEDICINA
Año:
2021
Tipo del documento:
Article