Abstract
INTRODUCTION: Nursing professionals who contracted Covid-19 went from being caregivers to victims of the infection, and they knew first-hand how dangerous it could be. The impact on these health care professionals stayed with them even after their physical health recovered. OBJECTIVE: To understand the experiences of nursing professionals hospitalized with COVID-19, regarding their illness, hospitalization and care received. METHODS: Qualitative phenomenological study, with two in-depth interviews each with six nursing professionals who had representative cases from public hospitals in Lima, Peru, was chosen until theoretical saturation was achieved. RESULTS: Four main themes emerged from the transcripts of the 12 interviews conducted: self-assessment about the form of infection, identification and complications of the disease, feelings about the disease-hospitalization, and perception of the care received as a patient. CONCLUSION: Being hospitalized as COVID-19 patients has been a difficult experience for nursing professionals, characterized by fear of dying; where the emotional support of their family and colleagues, as well as their spiritual strength, have allowed them to achieve their recovery, so they feel satisfied with the care received.