Introduction: The covid-19 epidemic has greatly affected the life of residents and work of staff in nursing homes. Purpose: The purpose of study was to examine the challenges faced by nursing homes' residents and staff during the Covid-19 epidemic as perceived by students of health sciences while working in the nursing homes within 'covid expeditions'. Methods: We used an integrative research strategy. We conducted ten semi-structured in-depth interviews with nine students included in ‘covid expeditions’ during the Covid-19 epidemic. Later, we conducted a survey with larger sample. We collected answers from 83 students (53 % of all students included in ‘covid expeditions’). The data obtained from the interviews were subjected to content analysis using the NVivo coding program. The data obtained from the questionnaire were analysed using the statistical data processing program SPSS statistics 27. The principal component method was used to identify a smaller number of principal components from a larger number of indicators. We used multivariate linear regression to examine how resources, the organization of staff’ work and the residents’ stay, and implementation of measures were related to the evaluation of success in managing the epidemic. We also analysed the content of responses to the open-ended questions to verify the results of the interview content analysis. Findings: The main challenges in nursing homes were a.) insufficient space resources, staff shortage, and poor quality of personal protective equipment in the area of resources b.) lack of clear guidelines and difficulties in ensuring a high quality of stay for residents in the area of the organization of staff’ work and the residents’ stay c.) lack of knowledge and consistency of staff in the area of implementing measures. Multivariate linear regression showed that the components 'Detection of infections and premises for staff' and 'Organization of isolations and residents' stay' were statistically significantly linearly correlated with the evaluation of success in managing the epidemic. Discussion and conclusion: The Covid-19 epidemic has shown how unprepared nursing homes are for an outbreak of diseases like Covid-19. Based on research results, they could prepare for possible similar situations by ensuring adequate resources and work plans.
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