Background:
The COVID-19 pandemic placed unexpected pressure on patients, staff, and healthcare services, with a strong impact on oncology departments. Healthcare systems rapidly shifted resources toward emergency COVID-19 care, which made access to cancer services more difficult. Patients with cancer often need frequent hospital visits for treatment, monitoring, and support. To strengthen future emergency preparedness and healthcare system resilience, it is important to understand the experiences of frontline healthcare workers during the COVID-19 pandemic.
 
The Aim:
The aim of this research project was to understand how oncology care was rapidly changed and workplace transformed during COVID-19 pandemic, and to explore the lasting innovations that came out of the crisis and recommendations needed for future risk management.
 
Method:
A qualitative study was conducted using in-depth semi-structured interviews with 15 multidisciplinary healthcare professionals, including nurses, physicians, pharmacists, and clinical administrators working in oncology care at the National Guard Hospital in Saudi Arabia during and after the COVID-19 pandemic. Interviews were conducted by a researcher experienced in qualitative methods, using an interview guide adapted from a study conducted in Lyon, France (Bogaert et al., 2023). The guide explored the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on cancer care, rapid adaptations to the crisis, and lasting innovations in oncology health systems in the post-COVID period. Interview transcripts were analyzed using thematic analysis, with categories developed inductively from the data.
 
Result:
Oncology healthcare workers described different phases of the COVID-19 pandemic, starting with initial uncertainty, followed by lockdown, and then the period after lockdown through the present. Transitions between these phases provided insight into rapid healthcare adaptation and phased responses to the evolving COVID-19 threat. Participants also described how the crisis fostered major operational and clinical innovations, including the implementation and rapid expansion of virtual clinics, modified chemotherapy scheduling, and strict infection control measures to ensure continuity of care for vulnerable patients, along with isolation strategies for cancer patients. Participants emphasized that cancer care remained a priority during the pandemic, and that decision-making required balancing guideline adherence with individualized patient needs. They also reported operational and staffing challenges related to infection, quarantine procedures, and ICU saturation.
 
Conclusion:
During the COVID-19 pandemic, the healthcare system at National Guard Hospital demonstrated strong capacity and flexibility in adapting to rapidly changing conditions. Previous epidemics, such as MERS-CoV, provided practical experience, but the pandemic confirmed that each crisis requires tailored responses. Despite this preparedness, challenges remained, particularly related to staff support and healthcare worker quarantine procedures. Nurses carried increased responsibility, as they often served as the primary point of contact between patients and physicians and assumed additional caregiving roles when family access was restricted. To ensure safe and continuous patient care, adaptable and evidence-based policies are needed for resource redistribution, including healthcare personnel, along with strengthened digital infrastructure.
 
Reference:
Bogaert, B., Kozlakidis, Z., Caboux, E., Péron, J., & Saintingy, P. (2023). What went right during the COVID crisis: The capabilities of local actors and lasting innovations in oncology care and research. PLOS global public health.