State center supporting nurses working with COVID-19 patients

by: Michael P. Norton, SHNS

Posted: Mar 1, 2021 / 09:54 PM EST / Updated: Mar 1, 2021 / 09:54 PM EST

RNurse Kristina Shannon, from left, chaplain Andrea Cammarota, and Emergency Room charge nurse Cathy Carter watch as medical workers try to resuscitate a patient who tested positive for coronavirus in the emergency room at Providence Holy Cross Medical Center in the Mission Hills section of Los Angeles. Hospitals across California have all but run out of intensive care beds for COVID-19 patients, ambulances are backing up outside emergency rooms, and tents for treating the sick are going up as the nation’s most populous state emerges as the latest epicenter of the U.S. outbreak. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong, File)

BOSTON (SHNS) – The state agency known as the Betsy Lehman Center for Patient Safety is offering a free six-week support group for nurses working with COVID-19 patients in any health care setting.

“Talking with peers is a proven strategy for coping with stresses, sadness, anger and other difficult feelings,” said Linda Kenney, director of peer support programs at the center. “Many nurses are experiencing these kinds of feelings right now and this virtual support group can help.”

The sessions will run on Wednesday evenings from 8 p.m. to 9:15 p.m. beginning March 10.

Support groups will meet on Zoom using phones, tablets or computers.