Structural Analysis of Social Representations of COVID-19 Among Health Professionals

AbstractThe COVID-19 pandemic has had significant repercussions, particularly among healthcare professionals who have faced drastic changes in their work routines, increased exposure to risk, the precariousness of services, and experiences of loss and anxiety. This study aimed to analyze the structure of social representations of COVID-19 among health professionals in Ceará, located in Northeastern Brazil. A qualitative study was conducted using the Theory of Social Representations and included nursing professionals (nurses, nursing technicians, and assistants), physicians, and physical therapists who were 18 years of age or older. The sample consisted of 1317 participants who were selected using convenience sampling. Due to restrictive measures, data collection was carried out remotely through a questionnaire created using Google Forms. Out of the 1317 participants, 737 (55.5%) were nurses, 191 (14.4%) were nursing technicians, 254 (19.1%) were physicians, and 145 (11%) were physical therapists. Additionally, 1123 (84.6%) of the participants were women, with a mean age of 34 ± 8.9 years. A total of 6635 words were elicited during the study, with 1316 different evocations. The central core of the social representations was composed of the terms “fear,” “anxiety,” and “anguish.” The similarity tree analysis revealed that “fear” (n = 802) served as the organizing structure, with 18 associated terms and five cores: “death” (n = 502), “sadness” (n = 203), “anguish” (n = 185), “anxiety” (n = 171), and “insecurity” (n = 144). The structural analysis of the social representations of COVID-19 among health professionals indicated that fear, anxiety, and anguish formed the central axis, highlighting the prevalence of negative emotions. This finding was supported by the presence of terms such as death, isolation, sadness, insecurity, and pain in the first periphery of the representation.Keywords: Social representationshealth professionalsCovid-19structural analysis Open ScholarshipThis article has earned the Center for Open Science badges for Open Data. The data are openly accessible at https://osf.io/jfg9u/?view_only=223754ec1f0841aca84fa62268eda679.Additional informationNotes on contributorsManuela de Mendonça Figueirêdo CoelhoManuela de Mendonça Figueirêdo Coelho Nurse. Stomal therapist. PhD in Clinical Care in Nursing and Health Professor at the UFC Nursing Department. Experience in Nursing, with an emphasis on quantitative research, stomatherapy, urinary incontinence, educational technologies, and mental health.Viviane Mamede Vasconcelos CavalcanteViviane Mamede Vasconcelos Cavalcante Nurse. Stomal therapist. Adjunct Professor of the Nursing Department at the Federal University of Ceará - UFC. PhD in Nursing. Experience in Nursing, with an emphasis on quantitative research, stomatherapy, and educational technologies.Riksberg Leite CabralRiksberg Leite Cabral Nurse. Master in Family Health. Specialist in Epidemiology and Health Surveillance. Specialist in Health Management. Administrative Director of the Municipal Hospital Dr. João Elísio de Holanda. Nursing specialist with emphasis on management and qualitative Research.Michell Ângelo Marques AraújoMichell Ângelo Marques Araújo Nurse. Doctor in Nursing. Specialist in Mental Health and Family Health. Adjunct Professor at the Federal University of Ceará. Professor of the RENASF/FIOCRUZ Postgraduate Program. Works mainly on the following topics: mental health, thanatology, spirituality and philosophy of care.Antônio Marcos Tosoli GomesAntônio Marcos Tosoli Gomes Doctor of Nursing. Post-Doctorate in Nursing. Full Professor of the Department of Medical-Surgical Nursing and the Postgraduate Program in Nursing at the Faculty of Nursing of the State University of Rio de Janeiro (UERJ). Develops research with the theoretical-methodological support of the Theory of social representations and analysis of speech.Jamylle Lucas DinizJamylle Lucas Diniz Nurse. PhD and Master’s student in Nursing from the Federal University of Ceará. Member of the Research Group on Health Policies, Care and Technologies for Vulnerable Populations, in the area of elderly health.Janaina Fonseca Victor CoutinhoJanaina Fonseca Victor Coutinho Nurse. Doctorate in Nursing. Associate Professor III at the Federal University of Ceará. Has experience in the area of Elderly Health and in the development and evaluation of educational technologies.Eveline Pinheiro BeserraEveline Pinheiro Beserra Nursing. PhD in Nursing. Professor of the Nursing course at the Federal University of Ceará. It operates in the following areas: Public health, Health Promotion, Health Education, Child and adolescent health, Management of health services; Environmental health and Communicable Diseases.Mariana Cavalcante MartinsMariana Cavalcante Martins Nurse. Doctor in Nursing.Associate Professor 2 of the UFC nursing course; Permanent Professor of the Postgraduate Program in Family Health (RENASF-FIOCRUZ) - Professional; Collaborating Professor of the postgraduate nursing program at UFC - Academic.Mônica Oliveira Batista OriáMônica Oliveira Batista Oriá Nurse. PhD in Nursing. Associate Professor IV at the Federal University of Ceará. She is coordinator of the Postgraduate Nursing Program at UFC. Coordinates the National Institute of Science and Technology in Clinical Simulation and Virtual Reality.Rachel Gabriel Bastos BarbosaRachel Gabriel Bastos Barbosa Nurse. PhD in Nursing. Professor of the Undergraduate Nursing Course at the Federal University of Ceará. She has experience in developing research, teaching and extension projects, applying quantitative or qualitative methodology.Marília Braga MarquesMarília Braga Marques Nurse. PhD in Nursing. Adjunct Professor 4 of the Undergraduate Nursing Course at the Federal University of Ceará. Nursing. She has experience in the field of Nursing, with an emphasis on Gerontology, Primary Care and Diabetes Mellitus.Thalia Alves Chagas MenezesThalia Alves Chagas Menezes Nurse. Resident in Oncology at Hospital Haroldo Juaçaba. Experience in Nursing, with an emphasis on stomatherapy, and educational technologies.Fabiane do Amaral GubertFabiane do Amaral Gubert Nurse. PhD in Nursing. Associate Professor II at the Federal University of Ceará, she works on Undergraduate and Postgraduate Nursing courses. Coordinator of the Professional Postgraduate Program in Family Health (Nucleadora UFC) in a network with FIOCRUZ.