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Foundation for Professional Nursing

Student Name

Institutional Affiliation

Course Name and Code

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Foundation for Professional Nursing

The COVID-19 pandemic highlights how socioeconomic factors, including access to

medical care, knowledge, financial security, and environment, determined who was most

negatively impacted by the disease. Public policy may influence many of these factors, and

many efforts have been made to do so with varied levels of success. Nurses who provided

care during the epidemic were exposed to real-world data sets, which they may use to spot

trends and suggest solutions. This paper discusses how the Covid-19 pandemic has impacted

the nursing profession.

Impact of the Covid-19 Pandemic on the Nursing Profession

The COVID-19 epidemic has had a considerable impact on the nursing profession.

The most significant impact of the pandemic on nursing is the increased attention on the

industry. Images of grieving nurses have profoundly affected the public, from those who have

seen them after a patient's death without family present to others who have seen them with

facial skin lesions from wearing N95 masks for extended periods. The public knows nurses'

challenges, such as long shifts and emotional trauma. Since the emergence of the pandemic,

the public has learned a lot about the ethical challenges and resources that impede nurses in

their line of duty (Sharif & Amin, 2021). Because of this realization, people are now more

aware of a problem that, in my opinion, nurses have always faced but seldom discussed

openly.

Actions Needed to Boost Nursing Safety and Morale

i. Transparent Communication

Open lines of communication in the nurses’ workplaces will greatly foster the nurses’

safety and boost their morale. Besides, with open communication, the availability of mental

health care and associated benefits will be increased.

ii. Taking Care of the Nurses’ Welfare

Healthcare organizations can boost nurses’ morale by caring for their welfare. For

example, they can offer to fund babysitters for those with underage children. Besides,

facilities such as gyms can also motivate the nursing workforce. There are gyms on the

premises. The organizations can offer nurses "days out" yearly to rest and refuel. Many of the

most successful organizations operate on the belief that happy, well-cared-for staff would

reward them with increased output and dedication (Maroof, 2018). This makes perfect sense

and could not be more timely, given the potential for low morale among workers during

COVID-19. Disengagement and exhaustion may contribute to the "turnover tsunami," as

some have put it.

iii. Increasing the number of staff to prevent burnouts

The healthcare industry is especially prone to burnout. Frontline healthcare

professionals during the COVID-19 pandemic will be subjected to stressful conditions and

extreme challenges. However, everyone in the healthcare industry has felt the effects of a

heavier administrative load, more stringent productivity standards, and less time off. The

widespread spread of COVID-19 has hastened the detrimental effects of inadequate

assistance and low morale. However, morale might take a hit if workplace health initiatives

are developed and introduced without considering employees' needs and interests, inviting

feedback during the planning stage, or protecting their privacy rights. The loss of trust

between management and staff can potentially lower morale and damage an organization's

image.

Describe Stereotypes That May Have Been Altered Due to Pandemic Media Coverage.

i. Prejudice against Nursing

The first stereotype that has been changed after the entrance of the Covid-19

pandemic is the notion that the nursing profession is effeminate and associated with emotions

and feelings of empathy. Sometimes nurses are invisible in health care, but the COVID-19
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epidemic has highlighted the undeniable need for nurses (Tang et al., 2021). Since the

emergence of the Covid-19 pandemic, it has become obvious that "nurses supply the bulk of

treatment and accept the weight of risk that comes with reversing a worldwide health

catastrophe."

ii. The Nursing Profession is Rigid

The epidemic has, above all, called for adaptability. Many nurses have moved to the

frontlines of the COVID-19 fight or have changed to address other gaps the epidemic has

produced due to the growing patient population and overcrowded hospitals, often working

long, irregular hours (Shuster & Lubben, 2022). In certain instances, nurses have provided

care across state boundaries, and former nurses have started working again. A few legislative

modifications have been required to optimize their value, easing long-standing restrictions on

nurses' modalities and areas of practice. Years ago, I would reflect on the difficulties of my

shifts and ask myself, "Did I do my best today?" or "Could I have done better to aid the

patient I lost or the families they left behind?" These internal conflicts existed far before the

COVID-19 epidemic, but the spread of the virus has brought them into the spotlight.

How the Recent Pandemic Has Changed my Nursing Practice

The COVID-19 pandemic taught the world a valuable lesson on the

interconnectedness and vulnerability of the many systems on which our lives depend. To a

large extent, the pandemic has altered the scope of my work as a nurse in the healthcare

system. The healthcare sector has been impacted the hardest. Many individuals gained a new

appreciation for nurses' and other medical staff's contributions to health promotion and

patient satisfaction. Nurses' experience providing care to patients during epidemics will

continue to be essential in restoring public health and preparing for the next health disaster

(Ardebili et al., 2021). Besides, due to the pandemic, my awareness and attention have
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increased. How nurses lead is comparable to what they do daily, but their awareness and

attention increase during a crisis. The demand for person-centered care, infection prevention

and control, team-based care, and other abilities that truly play to nurses' abilities are

increasing due to the epidemic.

In conclusion, the nursing profession is through a period of change. Although the

pandemic has altered almost every element of health care, the effects on nursing could be the

most significant given that nurses make up the largest percentage of the personnel in the

sector. Besides, various media-based stereotypes of the profession have changed since the

pandemic's emergence.
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References

Ardebili, M. E., Naserbakht, M., Bernstein, C., Alazmani-Noodeh, F., Hakimi, H., &

Ranjbar, H. (2021). Healthcare providers experience of working during the COVID-

19 pandemic: A qualitative study. American Journal of Infection Control, 49(5), 547-

554. DOI:10.1016/[Link].2020.10.001

Maroof, M. A. (2018). Emerging Trends in HR Practices and Its Impact on Employees

Performance. Journal of Emerging Technologies and Innovative Research (JETIR).

DOI:10.1111/jocn.16029

Sharif, S., & Amin, F. (2021). COVID-19 pandemic; anxiety and depression among frontline

healthcare workers: Rising from the ashes. In Anxiety, Uncertainty, and Resilience

During the Pandemic Period-Anthropological and Psychological Perspectives.

IntechOpen. DOI:10.2139/ssrn.4315580

Shuster, S. M., & Lubben, N. (2022). The uneven consequences of rapid organizational

change: COVID-19 and healthcare workers. Social Science & Medicine, 315, 115512.

DOI:10.1016/[Link].2020.10.001

Tang, C. J., Lin, Y. P., & Chan, E. Y. (2021). ‘From expert to novice’, perceptions of general

ward nurses on deployment to outbreak intensive care units during the COVID‐19

pandemic: A qualitative descriptive study. Journal of Clinical Nursing.

DOI:10.1016/[Link].2022.115512