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Journal article
A global comparison of nursing and midwifery's and medical efficacy in preventing COVID‐19 deaths 2019–2022
International nursing review, Vol.70(4), pp.552-559
2023
PMID: 37718556
Abstract
Aim
Compare roles of nurses and midwives and physicians in reducing COVID-19 deaths measured with a case fatality ratio.
Background
The roles and responsibilities of different health disciplines to the COVID-19 pandemic vary. While more difficult to measure, objective assessments of discipline contributions of nurses and midwives and physicians can be viewed through statistical analysis.
Methods
Population-level data are analysed with scatter plots, bivariate correlations, partial correlation and multiple linear regression models to illustrate the contributions of nurses and midwives and physicians in reducing COVID-19 deaths. The role of nurses and midwives and physicians in protecting the community against COVID-19 deaths is explored and compared using competing effects of affluence, age and urbanization. Data analysis software programs include Excel v.2016, SPSS v.28 and Fisher r-to-z transformation.
Results
Nurses and midwives reduce COVID-19 deaths significantly more than physicians. This difference remains while controlling for physician care, economic affluence, median age and urbanization individually or in combination. In contrast, the role of physicians in reducing COVID-19 deaths is less independent than nurses and midwives. Linear regression results insinuate when nursing and physician care are collated together with other predicting factors, physicians’ contribution to community protection against COVID-19 case fatality ratio is statistically explained by nursing and midwifery care.
Discussion
Unlike physicians, the nursing and midwifery workforce is bigger and located throughout all healthcare system levels and, therefore, is more accessible to the community. This is an important point in explaining the contribution of nurses and midwives to reducing COVID-19 deaths when compared with physicians.
Conclusion
This study suggests that, worldwide, the nursing and midwifery workforce may play a more significant role in protecting the community against COVID-19 deaths than physicians.
Implications for health policy, nursing and midwifery practice
The findings from this study offer a unique perspective for health authorities to further understand the complementary and independent role of the nursing and midwifery workforce in respect of the healthcare team. This study suggests the importance of a broader range of healthcare services, especially during the pandemic, for example, COVID-19. With the permission of health authorities, the nursing and midwifery workforce should have further extension of their scope of practice in situations such as pandemics due to their broader access to the community.
Details
- Title
- A global comparison of nursing and midwifery's and medical efficacy in preventing COVID‐19 deaths 2019–2022
- Authors/Creators
- Wenpeng You - The University of AdelaideLynette Cusack - The University of AdelaideFrank Donnelly - The University of Adelaide
- Publication Details
- International nursing review, Vol.70(4), pp.552-559
- Publisher
- John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of International Council of Nurses.
- Number of pages
- 8
- Identifiers
- 991005733060007891
- Copyright
- © 2023 The Authors.
- Murdoch Affiliation
- School of Nursing
- Language
- English
- Resource Type
- Journal article
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- Citation topics
- 1 Clinical & Life Sciences
- 1.21 Psychiatry
- 1.21.1179 Mindfulness and Mental Health
- Web Of Science research areas
- Nursing
- ESI research areas
- Clinical Medicine