research discussion

Effect of COVID-19 Pandemic on Nurses’ Satisfaction Working in Intensive Care Units, Saudi Arabia

Introduction

COVID-19 is believed to have started in Wuhan City, China, on 27th December 2019. It is believed that an individual working at the now world-famous Huanan seafood market in Wuhan was infected with a virus from an animal. This disease is caused by a severe acute respiratory syndrome–coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) which has turned out to be a long-lasting global pandemic causing high fatality rates while at the same time incapacitating health systems across the globe. As of now, the disease has no cure, and the only available prevention approaches include case isolation, contact tracing as well as quarantine, physical distancing, decontamination as well as hygiene measures. However, many cases have turned out to be critical and, therefore, the need for the patients to be rushed in intensive care Units. This has then resulted in the overwhelming of ICU of many hospitals across the globe (Presot, 2019). The nurses working in these Intensive Care Units (ICU) have also been overwhelmed by many patients and still (COVID-19) is spreading rapidly which bringing pressure and challenges to nursing staff. The aim of this study will be to assess the effect of COVID-19 pandemic on ICUs nurses’ satisfaction.

Significance of the Study :

The results of this study will be important because it will help the Ministry of health, policy and decision makers to be aware of the situation regarding nurses’ satisfaction during this event and will help also to formulate a program that will create awareness among the nurses working in the ICU and ensure that they are provided with what they need to effectively handle cases in the ICU.

Objectives and research questions:

The specific objectives of the research will be to:

· Explore the effect of COVID-19 pandemic on ICUs nurses’ satisfaction.

· Investigate the difference in nurses’ level of satisfaction and their socio-demographic variables such as age, marital status, and years of experiences.

To achieve these objectives, data will be collected and analyzed according to the following questions:

1. What is the effect of COVID-19 pandemic on ICUs nurses’ satisfaction?

2. Is there a relationship between nurses’ level of satisfaction and their socio-demographic variables such as age, marital status, and years of experiences?

Methodology:

Study Design: The study design will be a descriptive cross-sectional design.

Setting: The study will be conducted in all ICU departments at National Guard hospitals in Saudi Arabia.

Study Population and Sampling:

A convenience sample of nurses who working in the previous setting and agreed to participate in the study.

Inclusion Criteria:

· All nurses working in ICUs with different job titles (head nurse, staff nurses, and allied nurses).

· Nurses working in ICUs in National Guard hospitals

Exclusion criteria:

· Nurses who are not permanently working in the ICU

Data Collection Tools:

The data collection will be collected using online self-administered structured questionnaire developed by the researcher using different literatures, the tool will be composed of two sections:

· First section; concerned with socio demographic data of the nurses’ such as age, gender, qualification, and years of experience….etc. -

· Second section; concerned with nurses’ satisfaction which consists of 15 questions, the 5-points Likert response scale of agreement will be used in order to assess nurses’ satisfaction level.

Validity and Reliability:

The pilot study will carried out to evaluate the validity and reliability of the questionnaire in order to detect any ambiguity in the tool, clarity of the items, as well as to determine the time consumed for data collection. Necessary modifications will be carried out and develop the final form of the tool. Cronbach's alpha coefficient will be used to measure the reliability of the items.

Data Analysis:

The data will be analyzed by using the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) Version 20. For descriptive statistical analysis; frequencies and percentages were used for all variables included in the study to describe the demographic data and explore the knowledge and attitude of couples, arithmetic means and standard deviations are also used. For inferential analysis, the correlation test and Chi-Square test will be used to examine the relation and association between variables. The statistical test of significance, or p-value, in this study was set at <0.05.

Ethical Considerations

· Informed consents will obtained from all the respondents for agreement about participation.

· The participants will have the data collection tool that contained an explanation of the study, its purpose, and the required instructions will be given to participants.

· Participation will be voluntary and participants have the right to refuse participating in the study.

· All answers will be maintained confidential and for the purpose of the current study only

References

Beiske, B. (2003). Research methods. Uses and limitations of questionnaires, interviews, and case studies. GRIN Verlag.

Heap, V., & Waters, J. (2019). Data collection methods. Mixed Methods in Criminology, 141-176. DOI:10.4324/9781315143354-8

Presot, D. (2019). The corona crisis: The terrifying true story of the origins of the coronavirus(COVID-19). Random Press LLC.