Introduction:

The COVID-19 pandemic revealed areas of opportunity in the health system and the need for a greater number of nursing professionals. Objective: Identify the perception of the work context of nursing professionals in northwestern Mexico during COVID-19 pandemic. Methodology: Exploratory, descriptive, correlational. and cross-sectional design. Non-random sampling of 170 nurses. Measurement instrument with Cronbach's alpha of 0.86. The data were processed using the SPSS V. 22.0 statistical program. The assumption of normality was tested with the Kolmogorov-Smirnov test and the homogeneity of variance with Levene. The Mann-Whitney and Kruskal-Wallis U tests were used. The level of significance allowed was 0.05. This research complied with the regulations of Mexico’s General Health Act for Research. Results: Statistically significant differences were found in the perception of the work context of nursing professionals in northwestern Mexico, according to the type of institution where they work (p=0.020), the work shift (p=0.004), and the fact of having been infected with COVID-19 (p=0.029). Conclusions: The perception of the work context of nursing personnel in northwestern Mexico reveals aspects such as lack of assessment, little participation in decision making, and poor economic compensation; however, according to their statements, more than half of the participants like their work despite the risks.