Challenge, fear and pride: nursing students working as nurses in COVID-19 care units

CONTEXT AND PURPOSE: During the crisis caused by the COVID-19 pandemic in Spain, students in the year of undergraduate degree were hired to provide care assistance support in hospitals. The purpose of the study is to explore their experiences of their premature professional incorporation into patient care in a pandemic situation. METHODS: A descriptive phenomenology research study was conducted. Data were collected in two phases: 1) Two focus groups and 2) Ten in-depth individual semi-structured interviews between July and August 2021. RESULTS: Twenty-two Nursing students from a Madrid University School of Nursing participated. All worked in COVID hospitalization units, 6 in intensive care units. Four main categories were identified. Student-professional nurse transition, Learning, Hospital integration and Emotions. CONCLUSION: Despite all the fears and negative emotions, the nursing students do not regret the decision to accept a contract to work as a healthcare professional in the COVID-19 pandemic. They feel that the pandemic has allowed them to see life from another perspective and with other priorities, strengthening their vocation to nursing.