Graduation Semester and Year
Summer 2025
Language
ENGLISH
Document Type
Dissertation
Degree Name
Doctor of Philosophy in Nursing
Department
Nursing
First Advisor
DEBORAH BEHAN
Second Advisor
YUNGFEI KAO
Third Advisor
JESSICA GRACE SMITH
Abstract
ABSTRACT
NURSING WORKPLACE RITUALS: COMMUNICATION BEFORE, DURING, AND AFTER COVID-19
Angel Infante, PhD
The University of Texas at Arlington, 2025
Professors: Dr. Deborah Behan (Committee Chair), Dr. Yungfei Kao (Committee Member), and Dr. Jessica Grace Smith (Committee Member)
Background: According to Griner et al. (2021) many disruptions caused confusion for healthcare workers during the pandemic. Communication is imperative when dealing with everyday disruptions in a hospital setting. However, it is even more important to learn about the different types of communication and what is communicated during a past pandemic to know how and what to communicate in a future pandemic. This study expands on the observations made by Griner et al. (2021) to explore work-related communication within a hospital setting before, during, and after COVID-19.
Methods: This study employed a descriptive, comparative, and correlational design utilizing the Patterns of Managerial Communication framework, along with a survey administered to RN to BSN, MSN, DNP, and PhD students at a single university to examine communication practices.
Results: Nurses working in a hospital setting identified communication modes and their preferences for specific communications before, during and after COVID-19. Nurses preferred face-to-face (in-person) for some types of communications and for other communications they preferred face-to-face (virtual via Zoom/Teams/Webex) and e-mail.
Conclusions: Effective work-related communication within a hospital setting is vital to navigate during a pandemic. The findings from this study provide insight into communications before, during and after the pandemic as well as preferences of nurses for face-to-face (in person), face-to-face (virtual via Zoom/Teams/Webex), and e-mail for specific types of communication. Further research is needed to create a robust communication protocol for implementation in a future pandemic.
Keywords
Nursing workplace rituals, Communication, COVID-19
Disciplines
Nursing Administration
License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Recommended Citation
Infante, Angel, "NURSING WORKPLACE RITUALS: COMMUNICATION BEFORE, DURING, AND AFTER COVID-19" (2025). Nursing Dissertations. 135.
https://mavmatrix.uta.edu/nursing_dissertations/135