Explaining the Experiences of Health Care Providers During the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Qualitative Study (original) (raw)

2023, Journal of Qualitative Research in Health Sciences

, a new viral disease from the coronavirus family broke out in the city of Wuhan, the capital of Hubei Province in China, and soon turned into a global concern (1). On February 11, 2020, The World Health Organization (WHO) named this new coronavirus "COVID-19" (2) and declared a pandemic on March 11, 2020 (3). Coronaviruses are a large family of viruses and have been the cause of dangerous cases of pneumonia such as acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) and Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS) in 2003 and 2012, respectively. COVID-19 is a type of coronavirus that has never been found in the human body before. Patients with COVID-19 usually show symptoms such as fever, cough, shortness of breath, and difficulty breathing. In more severe cases, this disease can lead to pneumonia, severe acute respiratory failure, kidney failure, and even death. There is still no specific treatment for COVID-19. COVID-19 patients are mainly treated symptomatically to prevent disease complications (4). The prevalence of COVID-19 infection increased rapidly in a short period, and by November 20, 2022, 634 million confirmed cases of COVID-19 and 6.6 million deaths were reported worldwide (5). In general, the outbreak of infectious diseases is considered one of the definite threats facing society, leading to a public health crisis. The sudden outbreak and rapid spread of infectious diseases necessitate paying attention to the capacity of the healthcare system to respond to epidemics. The preparation for managing the outbreak of infectious diseases involves healthcare providers' skills, abilities, and knowledge in providing healthcare and treatment services (6). Furthermore, the pressure on healthcare providers continues to increase. This pressure presents itself in two forms: The excessive burden caused by the disease on the limited capacity of the health system and the negative effects on the health of healthcare providers, including the risk of infection (7). Accordingly, in a special declaration, WHO highlighted the rights of healthcare service providers, including providing the necessary mechanisms for training and