Abstract
Despite available evidence of COVID-19’s impact on healthcare workers, little has been documented on psychiatric nurses’ perceptions and experiences while working in a psychiatric institution in the Gauteng Province during the pandemic. Therefore, the aim of this study was to explore and describe psychiatric nurses’ perceptions and experiences working in a psychiatric institution during the COVID-19 pandemic and make specific recommendations to promote their mental health.
A qualitative, exploratory, descriptive and contextual research design was used, and the study was conducted over two phases. Phase one focused on exploring and describing psychiatric nurses’ perceptions and experiences working in a psychiatric institution in Gauteng Province during the COVID-19 pandemic, and phase two described specific recommendations to promote their mental health.
The researcher conducted ten in-depth, individual interviews. The central question was, “How was it for you, working in a psychiatric hospital during the COVID-19 pandemic?” Collaizi’s descriptive phenomenological data analysis method was utilised to develop five themes and sub-themes. The psychiatric nurses perceived and experienced working in a psychiatric hospital during COVID-19 as challenging and overwhelming. They mentioned coming to the realisation that COVID-19 is real, and dealing with the mental status of patients who did not comprehend imposed regulations. Other contributing factors to these challenges included balancing patient safety with quality care. The psychiatric nurses were also fearful of contracting the virus and providing care to patients in the COVID-19 units. The psychiatric hospital’s unpreparedness, ever-changing COVID-19 protocols and policies, and resource unavailability worsened their experiences. Furthermore, the psychiatric nurses perceived management as unsupportive; however, they became more resilient and supported each other as the duty to care was vested in them.
Ultimately, the psychiatric nurses offered recommendations to manage future pandemics in psychiatric hospitals. These include prioritising nurses’ mental health and involving them in decision-making processes, enhancing communication and
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information sharing, providing comprehensive training in infectious disease protocols, ensuring the adequate provision of resources, and promoting evidence-based research to inform practice. By implementing these recommendations, psychiatric institutions can better support psychiatric nurses and enhance their ability to respond effectively to future pandemics, ultimately ensuring the well-being of carers and patients. General recommendations for psychiatric nursing practice, further research and psychiatric nursing education were also developed.