COVID-19 impact on nurses in Spain: a considered opinion survey.

AIM: To survey nurses' opinions about their work conditions at the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in Spain. BACKGROUND: For the Spanish General Council of Nursing (the Consejo General de Enfermería de España), it was essential to have information on nursing workforce conditions and nurses' preparedness to wear protective measures at the pandemic's onset. The coronavirus outbreak was believed to have started in China and rapidly spread as a global pandemic requiring policies and actions for planning emergency healthcare delivery. METHODS: A cross-sectional survey was conducted online. Data were collected during April 2020 and covered social demography, working conditions, training, availability of personal protective equipment, and nurses' health conditions, including the impact of COVID-19. FINDINGS: From all national territories in Spain, 11 560 registered nurses from different services completed the questionnaire. Findings indicated that the lack of personal protective equipment was a crucial issue, as well as service planning and organization, and 80.2% reported high or very high psychological impact of COVID-19. Alarmingly, 29.5% of the nurses reported COVID-19 symptoms. Of these 23.3% had been tested, and 30.2% were confirmed as being positive to the virus. The nurses deemed proper preparedness for emergencies and disasters as a significant concern. CONCLUSION: Nurses' responses showed evidence of health services deficiencies as a source of damage to their capacity to provide safe patient care and protect themselves and their families' health. The working conditions of the nurses are at critical levels and are unacceptable. The study results provide evidence regarding the necessity of suitable planning and actions being taken to enable safe patient care and safety for nurses. IMPLICATIONS FOR NURSING AND HEALTH POLICY: Our survey gathered nurses' views at the pandemic's onset. The evidence gathered is being used to advise policymakers and nursing organizations to take actions to control public health risks to populations. It is necessary that more investment in growing nursing workforce expertise and health infrastructure for pandemic and epidemic emergencies is provided.

[Educational technology in nursing: the conceptual framework and the experience of the Latin American centers]. / Tecnología educacional en enfermería: marco conceptual y experiencias de los centros latinoamericanos.

In the first part of the article the assertion is made that educational corpus of technology should not be regarded as something apart, but as a corpus of teaching methods, techniques and resources rationally organized to solve problems of material and conceptual situations and processes. Several educational technologies are explained on the basis of their underlying theoretical frameworks, and grass-root educational technology is advocated because, while it does not emphasize efficiency, it is capable of inducing innovations that are effective in that they actually accomplish changes. The second part reviews the results of the Latin American Program for Educational Technology in Nursing, which PAHO conducts through a network of centers in the nursing schools of several countries. The purpose of the Program is to disseminate modern educational technology and to endeavor to harmonize nurse training with demands and trends in the delivery of health services.