Mental health of nursing professionals during the COVID19 pandemic: a qualitative analysis

INTRODUCTION: Levels of anxiety, stress, panic syndrome, depression, among others, have increased significantly in the general population around the world during the New Coronavirus pandemic (COVID-19). Likewise, the scenario generated by COVID-19 affected the mental health of health professionals, who, surrounded by uncertainties, needed to perform their supportive care while also becoming ill. In this work, we give prominence to the professionals of the Nursing team. OBJECTIVE: This research aims to identify in the scientific literature, the factors that have compromised the mental health of nursing professionals, active in the period of the COVID-19 pandemic. METHODS: This is a descriptive study of integrative review of the literature of a qualitative nature. The following electronic bibliographic bases were consulted for literature research: Latin American Health Sciences Literature (LILACS), Medical Literature and Retrieval System Online (Medline/PubMed), Nursing Database (BDENF), Scientific Electronic Library Online (Scielo) and Virtual Health Library (CidSaúde/BVS). The time clipping was from the year 2020. The first selection of texts was made by reading the titles and abstracts of articles published in full text, in English and Portuguese. Twenty-seven articles were selected, based on the complete reading of the articles. RESULTS: Articles categorized by order of identification: MEDLINE/PUBMED (60- 72.28%); LILACS (23 - 27.72%); BDENF (0 - 0%), Scielo (0 - 0%), CidSaúde/BVS (0 - 0%). The major publications were: the impact of routine on the mental health of nurses, increased working hours, lack of individual protection equipment, uncertainties related to the disease, removal from the family, social isolation and the main strategies that were implemented in the services to minimize psychological effects of professionals. CONCLUSION: Interventions by health organizations are necessary in order to provide psychological and social support, follow-up and daily planning to each member of the Nursing team during and after the COVID-19 pandemic