Nurse Anxiety Levels and Caring Behavior during the COVID-19

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic is a global outbreak of the coronavirus disease caused by SARS-Cov-2. Health workers are the most vulnerable to contracting the disease. Anxiety is a reaction to a threatening and unexpected situation such as the COVID-19 pandemic. Anxiety can have a direct or indirect impact on physical, psychological and behavioral aspects. Caring behavior is central to nursing practice that must be carried out by nurses even in the era of the COVID-19 Pandemic. This research used a cross-sectional research design. The data was collected from a questionnaire distributed on April 21, 2021 with a total sample of 42 from 72 populations. The purposive sampling technique was used in this research. Data processing included coding, editing, and tabulating. The data were subsequently analyzed using Chi-Square statistical test through SPSS. Most of the nurses at Lumajang Islamic Hospital experienced Mild Anxiety levels,  with a total of 38 people (90.5%), and most of them performed Good Caring Behavior with a total of 41 respondents (85%). From the Chi-Square statistical test that has been conducted, p Value = 0.000 which is smaller than the alpha value (0.05) so that H1 is accepted. There is a relationship between the level of anxiety of nurses and caring behavior of nurses in the Inpatient Installation of Lumajang Islamic Hospital. High self-efficacy and a long working period are among the factors that promote good caring behavior in the COVID-19 pandemic era.