Introduction:

The COVID-19 pandemic provided evidence of gaps in the preparation of health professionals. The objective of this study was to know the suggestions of professionals who worked in healthcare about how to better prepare them to deal with this context.

Method:

This was an exploratory qualitative study with in-depth semi-structured interviews of diverse groups of professionals from a high-complexity teaching hospital in the South Region of Brazil. Comprehensive Sociology was used as a framework.

Results:

The suggestions for institutions that provide healthcare included greater attention to their clinical staff, with regularly offered technical training and psychological preparation programs. Suggestions for health education institutions included greater curricular emphasis on psychological aspects and comprehensive care in human health, with humanization; communication; collaborative teamwork, leadership, and management; greater theoretical and practical course load, with simulation and practice in real emergency and intensive care scenarios, in addition to contents covering crisis medicine, biosafety, bioethics when resources are scarce, and care for critically-ill patients.

Discussion:

The literature indicates that investments in permanent education programs minimize avoidable errors, improve team performance and promote professional development. In the context of the Covid-19 pandemic, the need to learn self-care, communication with patients and family members and strategies for controlling and managing emotions was highlighted. With regard to technical and scientific skills to be emphasized in the presence of mass crises, topics related to biosafety and care for critically-ill patients are highlighted.

Final considerations:

The suggestions provided can contribute to better preparation of health professionals to work in pandemic contexts.

        · abstract in Portuguese     · text in English | Portuguese     · English ( pdf ) | Portuguese ( pdf )