• Ju Yeon Lee, Ji Yeon Lee, So Hee Lee, Jangrae Kim, Hye Yoon Park, Yeonjae Kim, and Ki Tae Kwon.
• Department of Psychiatry, Chonnam National University Medical School, Gwangju, Korea.
• J. Korean Med. Sci. 2021 Jun 14; 36 (23): e170.

BackgroundDuring the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, health care workers (HCWs) have faced multiple physical and psychological challenges while carrying out their duties. In this study, we examined the experiences of specific groups of HCWs during the pandemic.MethodsFrom 18 November to 30 December 2020, we conducted a qualitative study using semi-structured, face-to-face interviews with four groups of 14 HCWs in three cities (Seoul, Daegu, and Gwangju) in South Korea. The HCWs who participated in the focus groups included physicians, nurses, medical practitioners, and cleaning staff who directly or indirectly cared for patients during the COVID-19 epidemic. Interviews were transcribed verbatim and analyzed using the consensual qualitative research approach.ResultsOur qualitative data analysis revealed four main domains: work-related struggles, personal life-related struggles, psychological stress, and health-related struggles. Health care providers were challenged by working in critical situations and were overwhelmed by heavy workloads, fear of infection, lifestyle changes, and psychological and physical struggles.ConclusionOur findings could serve as a foundation for establishing health care systems and policies that help HCWs cope with occupational stress, thus increasing their ability to adapt to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.© 2021 The Korean Academy of Medical Sciences.

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