The heroism of nurses during the COVID-19 pandemic: A phenomenological study from Jordan

Purpose. This paper aimed to shed light on the phenomenon of heroism among nurses by conducting semi-structured interviews with a purposive sample of nurses of a well-known hospital in Jordan in January and February 2021 who stood up against the COVID-19 virus pandemic. Those nurses were exposed to the risk of being infected and possible death in a critical and uncertain situation. Design. The study described the lived experiences of those nurses, identified the meanings of those experiences, and clustered those meanings in themes guided by the descriptive phenomenological view of Husserl and using the descriptive phenomenological analysis method of Colaizzi. Findings. The study highlighted several elements related to heroism derived from nurses’ experiences, i.e., the hero understands the risky situation, has the desire to help others, is confident, faces stressors, benefits from the existing supporting system, copes positively, and ends up with positive outcomes. At last, the study proposed a model for heroism. Value of results. The study opens the door for understanding the phenomenon of heroism basedon the nurse’s lived experiences and its impact on individuals and organizational performance. The study recommended teaching heroism to people and preparing them for risky situations as a strategy for business continuity during crises. Also, the authors encourage scholars to conduct further qualitative and quantitative research about heroism in other contexts considering cultural differences, various work environments, and crisis types.