Speakers - WNSC 2023

Abstract

The pandemic of COVID-19 should be a landmark for humanity in terms of union, solidarity, cooperation, and fraternity. For healthcare professionals, specifically nurses, we can generally speak of these principles as the basics, but we had a lot of damage and suffering from being on the front line of care. Estimates point to hundreds of thousands of deaths of healthcare professionals in the world, many of them in nursing. Nursing professionals faced episodes of profuse loss of patients, loss of loved ones, social isolation of family and friends, perceived feelings of helplessness and incapacity, inadequate working conditions (overload, increased working hours, long daily shifts without breaks, lack of material and equipment, ethical conflicts), discomfort and difficulty in relaxing, lack of support from superiors and health care institutions, physical illness, suffering, and mental illness. The onset or worsening of anxious and depressive symptoms associated with this scenario was common. The mental health of the world's population was put to the test and the results are not the best. Nursing professionals have needed to receive mental health support and resources have not always been available for this. After the crucial months of the pandemic, there are still many nursing professionals in mental distress and those without adequate therapeutic follow-up or without treatment. The pandemic leaves us with lessons learned and indications for the future, in particular the importance of investments in the mental health of the population and, specifically, of healthcare professionals with a view to better practice in times of normality or under conditions of global emergency. Health institutions must be committed to maintaining adequate working conditions, preserving the physical and mental health of workers, investing in permanent education, promoting leisure and recreational activities, investing in interpersonal relationship activities, getting as close as possible to the horizontality of professional relationships and the consequent reduction of hierarchies (a very common fact in nursing), offer support services and interventions in mental health, conduct therapeutic listening groups, prevention actions in mental health and healthy habits of life, search for professionals in suffering and illness, meetings with teams and management for conflict resolution, benefits, and salary fair to the memorable work that is done, recognition of the work and the role of nursing. The class entities can greatly collaborate in the advocacy and achievement of the actions listed for the institutions and collaborate in the realization of some such as offering or facilitating access to treatment, psychological support, and prevention programs, fighting for improvements in working conditions and quality education, promoting the social valorization of nursing through wide dissemination, and being close to the professionals. For professionals, it is necessary to have the training, organization, and political participation to fight for adequate working conditions, social recognition and appreciation, and for the necessary changes in the profession. Professionals should be aware of the signs and symptoms of mental suffering and illness and seek professional help as soon as possible, be open to help and overcome prejudice. Nursing professionals need to be aware that they are a fundamental part in the provision of care and to seek union, the strengthening of the class, and the solitary fight for rights, specifically for mental health. The pandemic showed everyone the need for and importance of nursing, there was recognition of the efforts and the loss of professionals, and we should make better use of this window that opened. Mental health needs to be preserved, as the pandemic has shown that there are unseen or unappreciated issues regarding the mental health of professionals that have been exacerbated.