A Qualitative Approach to Ethical Challenges of Iranian Nurses during the COVID-۱۹ Pandemic

Background: Nurses have critical roles and responsibilities during the COVID-۱۹ pandemic. They may face ethical issues due to exposure to new illnesses and a lack of experience in these new situations. Aims: The present study aims to qualitatively investigate the ethical challenges of Iranian nurses during the COVID-۱۹ pandemic. Methods: In this qualitative, semi-structured individual interviews were conducted with ۱۵ nurses working in COVID-۱۹ wards from a hospital in Yazd, Iran from February ۲۰۲۰ to April ۲۰۲۱. Data analysis was conducted by thematic analysis techniques. Results: During the analysis, five themes were generated including ethical principles, ethical decision-making, educational challenges, communication challenges, and workplace challenges. Conclusion: The current findings demonstrated that frontline nurses at COVID-۱۹ wards experienced their work as challenging and with much uncertainty at the beginning of the COVID-۱۹ outbreak. It seemed as if training programs in advance could help reduce this uncertainty.