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Autonomy and isolation experienced by patients and primary caregivers during COVID ‐19 hospitalization in Barcelona (Spain)
Author(s) -
MestresSoler Olga,
LeyvaMoral Juan M.,
AguayoGonzález Mariela,
ZuriguelPérez Esperanza,
Rosales Marta,
GómezIbáñez Rebeca
Publication year - 2022
Publication title -
nursing and health sciences
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.563
H-Index - 47
eISSN - 1442-2018
pISSN - 1441-0745
DOI - 10.1111/nhs.12986
Subject(s) - loneliness , feeling , autonomy , pandemic , isolation (microbiology) , medicine , covid-19 , family caregivers , qualitative research , family medicine , nursing , psychology , psychiatry , disease , social psychology , social science , microbiology and biotechnology , pathology , sociology , political science , infectious disease (medical specialty) , law , biology
This study aims to describe patients' and family caregivers' hospitalization experiences during the COVID‐19 pandemic. Using qualitative exploratory descriptive methods, 13 patients admitted to the largest hospital in Barcelona (Spain) due to COVID‐19 were interviewed by telephone once discharged, as were eight primary caregivers. Data were analyzed using the content analysis method proposed by Krippendorff. Two main themes were identified: (i) Acceptance of mandatory isolation for patients and family caregivers, which refers to the verbalization of a feeling that justifies the imposed isolation and the need for the use of personal protective equipment by the health team for everyone's safety; and (ii) Limited autonomy during hospitalization for patients and family caregivers, which describes participants' perceptions of autonomy during hospitalization. Patients and caregivers experienced feelings of loneliness, which negatively affected their emotional health. In addition, they experienced reduced autonomy due to new habits and routines intended to control the pandemic for the benefit of public and global health.