COVID 19 Pandemic Process: Turkish Nurses Association

Abstract

Dünya Sağlık Örgütü'nün "pandemi" olarak kabul ettiği COVID-19 salgını, içinde bulunduğumuz küreselleşme çağında, insanlığın karşı karşıya kaldığı ciddi bir afettir. Bu salgın, ülkelerin sağlık sistemlerinin, çevik, uyarlanabilir ve esnek yapıda olmasının önemi ve hemşirelerin kilit konumunu bir kez daha ortaya koymuştur. Türk Hemşireler Derneği, pandemi sürecinin en az zararla atlatılması için, ilk olgunun açıklanmasından başlayarak ulusal ve uluslararası düzeyde faaliyetlerde bulunmuş ve sürecin içinde aktif bir şekilde yer almıştır. Bu faaliyetler arasında sağlık çalışanların ve toplumun bilgilendirilmesine yönelik bilimsel ve güncel bilgilerin paylaşılması; hemşirelerin bu süreçte yaşadıkları sorunlar ve bu sorunlara yönelik çözüm önerilerin rapor hâline getirilerek Sağlık Bakanlığı ve ilgili birimlere iletilmesi; bakım algoritmaları ve kişisel koruyucu ekipman kullanımı videolarının hazırlanıp paylaşılması yer almaktadır. Ülkemizde hemşireler COVID-19 pandemi sürecinde, güvenli ve nitelikli hemşirelik bakımını en üst düzeyde sürdürmek için zor şartlar altında mesleklerini en iyi şekilde icra etmiştir. Bununla birlikte, hemşirelerin politikaları oluşturma ve karar alma süreçlerinde etkili rol alması; liderlik pozisyonlarında daha fazla hemşirelere yer verilmesi için gerekli girişimlerin ve yatırımların ivedilikle yapılması gerekmektedir.

A qualitative study on the experiences of the first nurses assigned to COVID‐19 units in Turkey

“…In other words, the problems that were already present regarding the education, management and personal rights of our profession have deepened with the epidemic. That the number of nurses working is almost 200,000, and that per 1,000 is 2 compared with the country's population; problems related to working conditions and environment (Senol Çelik et al., 2020) may become even more challenging in this period. Unknown and unforeseen facts about the pandemic process both made the organisation of health services difficult and required sudden decision that would strain the adaptation capacity of nurses.…”

“…Nurses are undoubtedly the primary professional group that shoulders the heavy burden of this pandemic. Pointing out the key role of nurses, THD delivered the report on the solution of the problems of our country's nurses to the Ministry of Health and published the COVID‐19 nurse training guide, bulletin and video recordings, which include care algorithms that enable nurses to access the most up‐to‐date and evidence‐based information (Şenol et al., 2020). Nurses' voices and perspectives should be integrated into policymaking process to minimize the injustices many nurses have faced to date.…”

“…The Turkish Nurses Association (TNA) explained the problems nurses experienced during this process and emphasized that nurses had to work in these units without having adequate time and training opportunities. TNA stated that nurses experienced problems such as access to personal protective equipment, fear of getting sick and infecting their relatives and society, lack of personnel and intense and difficult working conditions (Şenol Çelik et al., 2020). Corley et al.…”

“…Exposure to social stigma was another problem frequently reported during MERS (Choi & Kim, 2018; Kim, 2017; Park et al., 2018), SARS (Maunder, 2004) and the COVID‐19 outbreaks (Xiang et al., 2020). In addition to these issues, TNA stated that the problems faced by nurses in Turkey were related to fulfilment of basic needs, pricing and their professional and personal rights (Şenol Çelik et al., 2020). However, it is necessary to reveal the experiences of nurses caring for coronavirus suspected or infected individuals through scientific studies.…”

Effect of assertiveness training on the nursing students' assertiveness and self‐esteem levels: Application of hybrid education in COVID‐19 pandemic

“…10 With the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, the need for nursing services has increased, and strategies to improve the quality of care have come to the fore with the increasing burden. 12 The growing workload in the health system led to increases in the nurses' work hours, the number of patients to whom they offered care, and their stress levels. 13 Problems such as the anxiety felt due to the infection as well as patient care, isolation measures, the obligation to work for long hours with protective equipment and the fall in the social interactions urge the nurses who will newly start practicing this profession to have qualities which will enable them to fight with challenging conditions besides having professional skills.…”