Nurses' Challenges With Personal Protective Equipment: A Qualitative Content Analysis Based on the COVID-19 Pandemic

In pandemic conditions, paying attention to the facilities and amenities nurses need while caring for patients is important. In this regard, this study aimed to explore the challenges and problems faced by nurses regarding the use of personal protective equipment during the COVID-19 pandemic.

This is a qualitative study with conventional content analysis using Granheim and Landman's approach. In this study, 12 participants were selected by purposive sampling, considering the inclusion criteria. Data were collected through in-depth semistructured interviews. Ethical considerations were applied to all stages of the study. MAXQDA 20 software was used to manage and organize the data.

About 59% of the participants (7/12) were female. The mean age of the participants was 37 years, and work experience ranged from 7 to 22 years. One main theme includes "Unfavorable management of personal protective equipment," and seven categories emerged from the data analysis.

Nurses face numerous challenges and problems in epidemics and pandemics, such as the COVID-19 pandemic. As these people are on the front lines of the fight against the pandemic, they always need various equipment and facilities, including qualified and standard personal protective equipment. Therefore, special attention should be paid to these members of the healthcare team through providing practical approaches to mitigate their challenges about using personal protective equipment.