# Nursing care for hospitalized patients with COVID-19 in light of Fundamental Care

## TL;DR

This study explores how the COVID-19 pandemic impacted essential nursing care for hospitalized patients in a public hospital.

## Contribution

The study applies Fundamental Care theory to analyze nursing practices during the pandemic in a Brazilian public hospital.

## Key findings

- Three categories of care were identified: Physical, Psychosocial, and Relational Care.
- Nurses faced challenges in maintaining communication, dignity, and emotional well-being during the pandemic.
- The pandemic highlighted the importance of the nurse-patient relationship based on Fundamental Care theory.

## Abstract

to analyze how the COVID-19 pandemic affected the Fundamental Care provided by nurses to hospitalized patients in a public hospital.

qualitative, descriptive, exploratory research. Twenty-four nurses were interviewed who cared for patients with COVID-19 in a public hospital in the capital city of the state of Paraná, from January to February 2022. Creswell Content Analysis was applied to the data, operationalized by the MaxQda software and in light of the Fundamental Care theory.

three categories were obtained with their respective dimensions: Physical Care (Personal Hygiene; Comfort and Mobilization; Eating and drinking; Rest and sleep; Safety and Medication Management), Psychosocial Care (Communication; Privacy; Dignity, respect and beliefs; Emotional well-being) and Relational Care (Active listening; Empathy and compassion; Engagement, support and involvement with families and caregivers and work with patients).

the pandemic period may have provided an opportunity to look at the nurse-patient-care relationship, especially based on the theory of Fundamental Care.

analisar como a pandemia de COVID-19 implicou no Cuidado Fundamental prestado por enfermeiros ao paciente hospitalizado em um hospital público.

pesquisa qualitativa, descritiva, exploratória. Foram entrevistados 24 enfermeiros que assistiram a pacientes com COVID-19 em um hospital público na capital no Paraná, de janeiro a fevereiro de 2022. Aplicou-se aos dados a Análise de Conteúdo de Creswell, operacionalizados pelo software MaxQda e à luz da teoria dos Cuidados Fundamentais.

foi obtido três categorias com suas dimensões respectivas: Cuidados Físicos (Higiene Pessoal; Conforto e Mobilização; Comer e beber; Descanso e sono; Segurança e Gerenciamento de medicamentos), Cuidado Psicossocial (Comunicação; Privacidade; dignidade, respeito e crenças; bem-estar emocional) e Cuidado Relacional (Escuta ativa; Empatia e compaixão; Engajamento, apoio e envolvimento a famílias e cuidadores e, trabalho com os pacientes).

o período da pandemia pode ter oportunizado o olhar na relação enfermeiro-paciente-assistir especialmente alicerçado na teoria dos Cuidados Fundamentais.