Maken vele handen licht werk? Geleerde lessen uit de eerste COVID-19-golf over verpleegkundige teamsamenstellingen op de Intensive Care

Abstract

COVID-19 has had a major impact on healthcare and especially on nurses. During the first corona wave, pressure was mainly on the Intensive Care Units (ICU). In order to meet nursing care demands, temporary teams were formed in which ICU nurses worked together with supportive professionals ("cross-boundary teaming"). The aim of this article is to provide insight into how teaming took place during the first COVID-19 wave and what opportunities and challenges this dynamic and flexible teamwork offers for team compositions in the future. Based on interviews with nursing care professionals who were on the ICU work floor, we can conclude that "many hands do not necessarily make work easier". Boundaries faded and the solidarity during the acute crisis situation created room to experiment with tasks and roles. At the same time, there was a strong need for fixed task demarcation and conflicts arose in the area of changing responsibilities. Labor market shortages and the expectation that more ICU beds will be needed on a structural basis, emphasizes the importance of investing in available capacities and alternative team compositions. The lessons learned from the COVID-19 crisis can contribute to initiating and shaping further change processes.