Opinions of emergency nurses in Turkey on their work environment during the COVID-19 pandemic and its relationship with their health: A qualitative study

COVID-19 patients being admitted to emergency service pose a high risk of exposure and infection to emergency nurses. Therefore, one of the primary responsibilities of hospital management is to provide an appropriate work environment for nurses. To analyze the opinions of emergency nurses about their work environment, and to understand how the working environment is related to their health during the COVID-19 pandemic. The study employed a qualitative descriptive research design and purposive sampling method. It was conducted in the emergency service of a state hospital in the central Anatolia region of Turkey, which was providing COVID-19 care at the time. The data were collected through semi-structured individual interviews held between January and February 2021. Each interview was conducted only once via WhatsApp video calls. Data collection was continued to reach data saturation (n:14). The data were analyzed using Colaizzi's seven-step content analysis. The Consolidated Criteria for Reporting Qualitative (COREQ) Studies checklist was followed in the study. Three themes emerged in the analysis of the data obtained from a total of 14 emergency nurses: (a) “Insufficient Physical Environment”; (b) “Inadequacies in Managerial Roles and Skills”; and (c) “The Effect of the Work Environment on Nurses' Health”. It was determined that the work environment of emergency nurses was inadequate in terms of resting areas, ventilation and separation of clean and infected areas, and they stated that they had not received adequate support from their managers and encountered difficulties due to equipment shortage, particularly in the early stages of COVID-19. It was also determined that the work environment caused psychological and ergonomic health issues. It is important to provide adequate managerial support and to make arrangements that resolve the physical and mental obstacles in improving the work environment of emergency nurses.