Care management and leadership according to nurses' perception in the hospital context of COVID-19.

Objective: To understand how nursing care management occurred during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Method: A qualitative study conducted at a university hospital in São Paulo, Brazil. The sample consisted of eight nurses who worked caring for patients who tested positive for COVID-19. Data collection was carried out through semi structured interviews about experiences in managing care in coping with the pandemic. Thematic analysis and interpretation based on psychodynamics of work were used in data analysis.

Results: The results allowed constructing three thematic categories: The invisible that limits: biosafety, distress, uncertainty and fear of the pandemic, protecting oneself and ensuring the protection of others; Management work process instruments: team training, staff sizing, materials management, creative practice in the face of insufficiency; The competencies involved with the team, teamwork and leadership.

Conclusion: Care management in COVID-19 was permeated by objective and subjective conditions, with situations of distress, pleasure, fear, insecurity and creative adaptation. Teamwork and leadership competencies, when present, can alleviate the distress that occurs in nursing work.