Background: The worldwide pandemic caused by the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus has challenged healthcare systems and the professionals who work in them. This challenge involves strong changes to which nurses have had to quickly adapt. Emotional and cognitive-behavioral factors influence the capacity for adaptation to change. Based on this model, the objective of this study was to validate the Adaptation to Change Questionnaire (ADAPTA-10) for identifying professionals in a population of nurses who have problems adapting to adverse situations such as those caused by COVID-19.
Methods: This study was performed with a sample of 351 nurses. (3) Results: The ADAPTA-10 questionnaire was found to have good psychometric properties, and to be an effective, useful tool for nurses in research and clinical practice. The two-dimensional structure proposed in the original model was confirmed. Scales are also provided by sex for evaluation of adaptation to change; the highest scores on the emotional component were among nurses who had not personally encountered the virus.
Conclusions: This instrument will be able to detect of the needs for adaptation to the new reality associated with COVID-19, as well as other situations in which nurses are immersed that demand adaptation strategies.
Keywords: ADAPTA-10 questionnaire; COVID-19; adaptation to change; nurses.