Aim. The primary purpose was to map the opinions and experiences nurses acquired during the COVID-19 pandemic, identify significant problems that need to be addressed before the next pandemic, and determine the prestige of nurses before and during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Material and methods. The design was descriptive and cross-sectional. A representative sample using sociological research methods was conducted using a non-standardized questionnaire. The sample of nurses was constructed using quota sampling; its structure corresponded to the composition of the overall nursing population in terms of age, sex, and region. The sample consisted of 1197 nurses.
Results. The most significant changes reported by nurses during this period include increased physical workload (89.6%), changes in social (88.4%), and personal lives (76.7%). According to respondents, the prestige of their profession increased during the pandemic compared to the period before the COVID-19 pandemic. Based on the two-tailed t-test, the prestige of the nursing profession increased statistically significantly during the COVID-19 pandemic compared to the pre-pandemic period.
Conclusions. During the COVID-19 pandemic, nurses experienced increased physical stress and changes in their social and personal lives. However, the prestige of nurses increased due to their crucial role in the fight against the pandemic.
