Perceptions of professionals in care of covid-19 in an emergency care unit

Abstract

Objective: to analyze the perception of professionals who worked on the front line in an Emergency Care Unit during different periods of the COVID-19 pandemic. Method: a qualitative study with professionals who worked in an Emergency Care Unit during the COVID-19 pandemic. An instrument was used to characterize the sample sociodemographic characteristics, and three guiding questions were used to describe perceptions about the period from 2020 to 2022. To examine the data, content analysis and similarity analysis were performed with the support of the IRAMUTEQ^® software, guided by the COnsolidated criteria for REporting Qualitative research. Results: professionals’ perceptions indicated negative feelings, warning of deterioration of mental health. As for positive aspects, the relevance of teamwork and cultural transformation at the personal and organizational level were observed. Conclusion: the analysis of professionals’ perceptions indicated feelings that pointed to the need to implement continuing education actions. It also warned about the deterioration of professionals’ mental health, with chronic repercussions that require adequate and long-term attention and investment in worker health.