A global overview of missed nursing care during the COVID-19 pandemic: a systematic review of quantitative studies
Problem
The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has placed unparalleled pressure on many countries’ healthcare systems, affecting the delivery of health and nursing care services. Despite a growing number of missed care studies during the pandemic, a broader perspective is essential when designing theory-driven strategies to improve nursing care delivery.
Purpose
To synthesise evidence reporting missed nursing care during the pandemic crisis.
Search strategy
A systematic review and narrative synthesis were conducted. An electronic search of articles published since the emergence of the pandemic was conducted using five databases (SCOPUS, PubMed, Web of Science, CINAHL, and PsychINFO) from July 2022 to September 2022.
Results of literature search
A total of 470 articles were identified during the initial search, and 10 articles were included in the review. The sample sizes of the studies ranged from 37 to 536 frontline nurses. The MISSCARE Survey was the missed care measure used in most of the articles reviewed. Results of the content analysis were grouped into five categories: (1) prevalence of missed care, (2) frequency of missed care, (3) reasons for missed care, (4) nurses’ and organisational variables contributing to missed care, and (5) work environment elements contributing to missed care.
Synthesis of evidence
This review identified a growing evidence base of research examining missed nursing care during the coronavirus pandemic, which was mainly collected through nurses’ self-report data. The findings of the review identified basic and fundamental nursing care tasks as the nursing care element that was most often missed during the COVID-19 pandemic, and inadequate nursing manpower was identified as the main reason for missed care.
Implications for practice
The results generated from this review will inform policy makers and hospital administrators when designing relevant and empirically driven strategies to address nursing care compromise during the COVID-19 pandemic.
A global overview of missed nursing care during the COVID-19 pandemic: a systematic review of quantitative studies