📖 ABSTRACT/OVERVIEW
Background: Nurses providing care during sickle cell vaso-occlusive crises encounter complex clinical, emotional, and ethical challenges. Their lived experiences represent a rich but unexplored source of insight for improving nursing care quality in Nigeria. Aim: This study explored the lived experiences of nurses providing care to patients with sickle cell disease during vaso-occlusive crises at Lagos University Teaching Hospital. Methods: An interpretive phenomenological design used in-depth interviews with 18 purposively selected registered nurses with at least two years of sickle cell ward experience. Data were analysed using Interpretive Phenomenological Analysis. Results: Four superordinate themes emerged: navigating inadequate analgesic access, emotional burden of witnessing recurrent suffering, relational bonds with long-term patients, and institutional disengagement from sickle cell care quality improvement. Nurses described moral distress from providing perceived suboptimal pain care. Conclusion: Nurses in sickle cell care face significant structural and emotional burdens. Adequate analgesic formularies, psychological support services for nurses, dedicated sickle cell care pathways, and nursing representation in hospital pain committees are urgently needed. Keywords: sickle cell disease, vaso-occlusive crisis, nurse experiences, phenomenology, Lagos.
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