Voices from Hiding: Assessing the Impact of the 2021 Coup on Nursing in Myanmar

Abstract

Aim

This study explores the initial impact of the 2021 Military coup on Myanmar's nursing profession, clinical practice and clinical education.

Background

Myanmar is a country historically riven by conflict; however, between 2010 and 2021, there was democratic reform and partial peace, prompting improvements in nursing practice and health outcomes. This study examines the impact of the 2021 coup, which effectively halted this progress, on Myanmar's nursing. It contributes to the limited literature exploring the effects of civil unrest and governmental coups on nursing, particularly in closed societies such as Myanmar.

Methods

We present a qualitative synthesis of semi-structured interviews, undertaken with seventeen nurses in Myanmar via secure video link.

Results

Nurses describe the challenges to nursing practice before the coup, the relative progress that Myanmar's nurses made in the short years of quasi-civilian government and, following the coup, the significant deterioration in working locations, conditions and personal safety for nurses who refused to work in Junta-controlled hospitals.

Discussion

The coup has damaged all aspects of nursing in Myanmar. These results document a rapid unravelling of progress, accentuated by long-standing underlying weaknesses in systems and leadership, with additional threats to personal safety. This trend has been previously reported in other conflicts but rarely directly from nurses and never from Myanmar.

Implications for nursing

The coup has been catastrophic for nursing in Myanmar. Participants describe widespread health system collapse, deliberate targeting by the junta and a need for international support.