ICU Nurses' Lived Experiences of Caring for COVID-19 Patients in an Egyptian Isolation Hospital

The rapid spread of coronavirus disease 19 (COVID-19) severely threatens human health worldwide. While many recent studies examining the COVID-19 pandemic have focused on service delivery and disease epidemiology, few have explored the lived experiences of frontline nurses caring for patients in the intensive care unit (ICU). In this study, we describe the lived experiences of nurses caring for patients with COVID-19 in the ICU during the COVID-19 pandemic. A qualitative research study using a phenomenological approach was conducted between May and September 2020. Eight ICU nurses were interviewed via phone calls. The data were collected through semi-structured interviews based on an interview guide. Qualitative content analysis using Colaizzi's 7-step method was performed. Four themes related to caring for COVID-19 patients were revealed: 1) distress, 2) clinical incompetency, 3) challenges in patient care, and 4) resiliency. ICU nurses caring for patients with COVID-19 experienced physical, psychological, and moral distress in very challenging professional and environmental conditions. Understanding these experiences can contribute to developing strategies and policies to enhance nursing care beyond the COVID-19 pandemic.