MOTIVATION OF NURSING STUDENTS TO CHOOSE A PROFESSION AFTER THE COVID CRISIS

Abstract

The great need for nurses, which has been accentuated during the unexpected emergence of coronavirus, has changed trends and attitudes in the choice of profession among young people. The world is facing serious challenges. The pandemic has challenged health systems in all countries and put them under serious pressure, changing the daily lives not only of individual societies but also of medical professionals. In this situation, society's demands and expectations of health care workers have changed. (Драганова и Сълева, 2021) The provision of human resources in health care is a logistical task of great complexity. (Станкева, 2020) As a result of this drastic change in the agenda of all humanity and the imposition of a greater responsibility and attention not only to individual but also to family and community health, there has been a growing interest in the nursing profession. This is a positive change which brings with it a number of questions relating to the specific reasons for the attraction to this profession which has lost ground. Interest in health care as an essential part of patient care has grown significantly in recent years (Богданова, 2019). Problems in health care, low prestige, heavy workload and inadequate pay are some of the more pressing reasons that have led to the outflow of students into the nursing profession. On the other hand, the familiarity and kinship with a medical person during the Kovid crisis was of particular importance for those in need of medical care, as the capacity of medical facilities was filled, whether Kovid related or not. The provision of health care requires respect for human life in all circumstances, as well as for the dignity and free choice of the patient (Александрова, 2019) Difficult, and sometimes impossible, access to health services has had a serious impact on people's attitudes and thinking about working in medical facilities. Many people realised, saw and experienced personally the stress, workload, responsibility and importance of a profession directly related to safeguarding the lives and health of those in need. It can be assumed that the role and importance of nurses will increasingly grow in the future. (Богданова, 2018) All this has led to a change in trends regarding the choice of specialties and, in particular, a shift towards medical ones. The purpose of the study is to show how the motivation of those wishing to train as nurses has changed, in a post epidemic environment and heightened attention to our health status.