The necessity of emotional intelligence in nursing during the COVID-19 pandemic

Emotional Intelligence is a barometer for the efficient professional response of employees and the effective provision of services in nursing. On the previous years, incidences of burnout have been recorded at the health sector in Greece, due to the difficult socio-economic conditions. The health crisis of the COVID-19 pandemic and the rapid increase in demand for health services pushed the already burdened Greek Health System to its limits and exhausted the health staff, causing additional physical fatigue and psychological exhaustion. Purpose: The purpose of the study was to highlight the necessity of Emotional Intelligence in the nursing profession, especially during the health crisis of COVID-19. Methodology: A systematic literature review was carried out, in electronic databases (Scopus, PubMed, Google Scholar, Elsevier, Iatrotek), using the Prisma method. A combination of specific keywords, such as "emotional intelligence", "COVID-19 pandemic", "work satisfaction', 'job performance', 'quality', 'emotional intelligence', 'pandemic', 'COVID-19', 'job satisfaction', 'job performance' was used and pre-defined inclusion and exclusion criteria of the studies were applied. Then, the collected studies were analyzed and evaluated. Results: A total of 23 studies met the inclusion criteria. The results highlighted the contribution of Emotional Intelligence as a protective factor in burnout and its positive contribution to the satisfaction and performance of nursing staff. Furthermore, its role in motivating, understanding and correctly positioning the employees was highlighted by the managers - supervisors of the nursing service. Conclusions: The emotionally intelligent leader being a democrat and a visionary, is a role model and guides employees to maximize their potential and deliver quality and safety to patients. The constant professional uncertainty and chronic psycho-stressful work situations that characterize the nursing profession make the need for training and emotional support of nurses’ imperative, regardless of position and rank.

Keywords: Emotional Intelligence, pandemic COVID-19, job satisfaction, job performance, quality of health care services, nurses.