Determination of post-traumatic growth status of frontline infection control nurses in the COVID-19 pandemic – a cross-sectional study

Introduction and aim. It is very important for nurses to experience post-traumatic growth in order to protect their mental health after traumatic events such as a pandemic. The aim of this study is to determine the post traumatic growth status of infection control nurses, who play an important role in health services in the COVID-19 pandemic. Material and methods. This study is a cross-sectional, descriptive study. The study was conducted with 170 infection control nurses working in infection control committees of hospitals in Turkey. “Nurse Descriptive Information Form” and “Post Traumatic Growth Inventory (PTGI)” were used as data collection tools in this study. Results. As a result of this research, the mean PTGI total score of the infection control nurses was 70.73±23.03, and it was determined that they experienced moderate growth from the sub-dimensions of the scale. Also it was determined that there was a statistically significant difference between the changes in philosophy of life sub-dimension scores of PTGI according to the age and marital status of the nurses. In addition, it was determined that there was a significant difference between the total PTGI scores according to the year of working as an infection control nurse and the loss of a relative of the healthcare worker due to the COVID-19 disease. Conclusion. In this study, it can be said that infection control nurses experienced a moderate post-traumatic growth after the COVID-19 pandemic. Age, marital status, working year and loss of a healthcare worker friend during the pandemic period seem to affect nurses’ post-traumatic growth. It is very important to determine the mental health of infection control nurses working on the front lines in the pandemic.