The Relationship between Traumatic Stress Symptoms and Psychological Resilience in Nurses Working During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Purpose: This study was conducted to determine the relationship between traumatic stress symptoms and psychological resilience in nurses working during the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods: The sample of this descriptive and correlational study consisted of 202 nurses working in a state hospital in Turkey. The data were collected using the Personal Information Form, the Traumatic Stress Symptom Checklist and the Brief Resilience Scale. Results: Post-traumatic stress disorder symptoms were found in 14.9% of nurses, and comorbid depressive symptoms were found in 17.3%. A moderate negative correlation was found between the Brief Resilience Scale scores and post-traumatic stress disorder symptoms (r = -0.542; p = 0.000) and between the Brief Resilience Scale scores and comorbid depressive symptoms (r = -0.487; p = 0.000). In multiple regression analysis, perception of health, perception of psychological status and working hours of nurses were factors affecting post-traumatic stress symptoms (R = 0.242; R2 = 0.210; F = 7.691; p = 0.000) and comorbid depressive symptoms (R = 0.241; R2 = 0.210; F = 7.676; p = 0.000). Conclusion: There are post-traumatic stress and comorbid depressive symptoms in nurses working during the COVID-19 pandemic. Post-traumatic stress disorder and depressive symptoms increased as psychological resilience levels decreased.