Perception of medical care conditions in an infectious diseases hospital by patients with COVID-19 (using the example of Nizhny Novgorod)

Introduction. The pandemic of a new type of coronavirus infection has negatively affected on the lives of Russians, causing them to feel fear for their lives. In this connection, there was a transformation of the social roles of the patient and the doctor, as well as a change in the conditions and boundaries of their interaction.

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the perception of COVID-19 patients of the conditions of medical care in an infectious diseases hospital.

Materials and methods. The study was conducted by questionnaire in two stages: in the summer of 2020 and in the summer of 2021, two hundred eighteen respondents participated.

Results. The pandemic significantly changed the lifestyle of the respondents: only 9.5 ± 3.2% of the respondents at the first stage of the survey led their usual lifestyle before the disease, a year later the proportion of such study participants had no statistical significance. Assessing the working conditions in doctors, 94.1 ± 3.1% of respondents at the first stage of the survey and 85.6 ± 2.9% at the second stage reported that they consider them difficult. 85.7 ± 3.8% of the participants at the first stage of the survey and 70.1 ± 3.9% of the second estimated the amount of payments to hospital medical workers as insufficient, taking into account working conditions and the level of workload of medical personnel (p_value < 0.005). All patients, without exception, were satisfied with the quality of provided medical care, despite the existing dissatisfaction with medical nutrition and living conditions.

Research limitations. The study materials are limited to the results of questionnaire survey of patients at two infectious diseases hospitals of N. Novgorod, conducted from June to August 2020 and 2021.

Conclusion. Patients with new-onset coronavirus complications at discharge were satisfied with their conditions of care at an infectious disease hospital. The facts of dissatisfaction with the therapeutic nutrition or living conditions noted by the patients did not influence their satisfaction.

Compliance with ethical standards. Conclusion of the local Ethics Committee N 7 dated 05/31/2022. 

Contribution of the authors:
Reshetnikov A.V. — research concept and design, editing;
Romanova T.E. — text writing, statistical processing of data, compilation of a list of references;
Abaeva O.P. — text writing, statistical data processing;
Prisyazhnaya N.V. — collection and processing of material;
Romanov S.V. — collection and processing of material;
Berdutin V.A. — text writing, editing.
All authors are responsible for the integrity of all parts of the manuscript and approval of the manuscript final version.

Acknowledgment. The study had no sponsorship.

Conflict of interest. The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Received: April 20, 2024 / Accepted: December 11, 2024 / Published: February 28, 2025