Measures Taken by Nurses to Protect Themselves from the Covid-19 Virus and Methods They Use to Cope with Stress

Objective: In the present study, the aim was to determine the measures taken by nurses to protect themselves from the COVID-19, and methods they use to cope with stress. Methods: This descriptive and cross-sectional study was carried out with 237 nurses working in Manisa City Hospital, located in Manisa, between August 2020 and March 2021. Data were collected with the Nurse Information Form, the Perceived Stress Scale, and the Ways of Coping with Stress Questionnaire. In the analysis of the data, numbers, percentage distribution, Mann Whitney u test, Kruskal Wallis test and Spearman correlation analysis were used. Results: Protective equipment used most by the nurses while they gave care to patients with COVID-19 were gloves (96.6%), masks (95.3%) and N95 masks (90.7%). Among the issues that caused the nurses to have stress most were the fear of transmitting viruses to their families or immediate circles, and experiencing physical or psychological disorders. The mean score the nurses obtained from the overall Perceived Stress Scale was 30.36±5.63. The mean scores the nurses obtained from the sub-dimensions of the Ways of Coping with Stress Questionnaire were as follows: Self-confident approach sub-dimension: 19.83±3.44, optimistic approach sub-dimension: 13.99±2.37, desperate approach sub-dimension: 18.23±4.15, submissive approach sub-dimension: 12.89±2.98 and seeking social support sub-dimension: 10.83±1.97. Conclusion: In our study, the majority of the nurses felt stressed during the COVID-19 pandemic. They were not competent enough to use the methods of coping with stress. Health institutions should reduce the stress on nurses and provide support to motivate them to work keenly.