The Lived Experience of Ambulatory and Perioperative RNs Displaced During the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Phenomenological Study

During the patient surge associated with the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in the spring of 2020, perioperative and ambulatory RNs at an acute-care specialty orthopedic hospital were redeployed to medical-surgical inpatient nursing units to care for patients with the disease. The purpose of this phenomenological study was to describe perioperative and ambulatory RNs' experiences during the redeployment. We used purposeful sampling to obtain representatives who worked routinely in perioperative (including postanesthesia care) and ambulatory settings before redeployment. Data saturation was reached after eight in-depth interviews that yielded rich descriptions of the nurses' experiences. Most participants indicated that the fundamental structure of the experience involved being "thrown into a war without weapons" and needing to find ways to fight. The results of this study provide a unique contribution to nursing literature and may assist nurses and leaders in the future.