EXPERIENCIA DE ENFERMEROS EN EL CUIDADO DE PERSONAS PEDIÁTRICAS CRÍTICAS DURANTE LA PANDEMIA COVID-19

INTRODUCTION. Critical pediatric care was affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, causing an overload of care, emotional stress on nurses, and a change in clinical protocols. OBJECTIVE. To describe the experiences of nurses in the care of critically ill pediatric patients during the COVID-19 pandemic. METHODS. Qualitative research with a descriptive phenomenological design, based on the approaches of Shorey and Ng, grounded in Husserlian phenomenology; with a sample of nine nursing professionals, selected by non-probabilistic convenience sampling, information was obtained through the application of semi-structured interviews as a technique; the Colaizzi method was used for data analysis. RESULTS. Four categories emerged: 1) Changes in the treatment and evolution of critically ill pediatric patients during the pandemic. 2) Lessons learned by nurses in clinical practice while caring for pediatric patients with COVID-19. 3) Challenges in the clinical care of critically ill pediatric patients during the pandemic. 4) Workload and work stress in nurses caring for critically ill pediatric patients during the pandemic. CONCLUSION. The study showed that pediatric critical care nurses, even amid the clinical and emotional complexity that characterized the COVID-19 pandemic, provided resilient and humanized care, strengthening their ethical and communication skills in caring for critically ill pediatric patients.