A enfermeira e a atenção pré-natal em São José do Rio Preto - SP / The Nurse and Prenatal Care in São José do Rio Preto

AUTOR(ES)
DATA DE PUBLICAÇÃO

2008

RESUMO

Prenatal care may not prevent the major complications of childbirth and puerperium, which are the leading causes of maternal mortality. However, a qualified attention over this period could change and even favor maternal prognosis, thus avoiding such causes. This study sought to know the reality of medical care given to the pregnant woman by the nurses at Basic Health Units (BHU) in São José do Rio Preto (SJRP), São Paulo State, Brazil. Obejctives: To characterize nursing professional profile and to describe the activities of prenatal care given by the nurses to the pregnant women based on the Womans Primary Health Care Nursing Protocol. Methodology: This is a descriptive study with a quanti-qualitative approach carried out at the county basic health units. The study population comprised 21 nurses and two county health managers who were interviewed e followed-up through a systematic observation. The interviews were tape-recorded and transcribed. Descriptive analysis was used to analyze quantitative data of the study population. Results are expressed as percentage and absolute frequency. Qualitative data were analyzed employing the content analysis, highlighting three thematic categories: the protocol: as it was planned and implanted; nursesperformance at the BHUs; and political space. Results: The mean age of the nurses was 34 years; 47.6% are married or live with a steady partner; 57.2% have children; 57% are graduated at least for 10 years, with an average of 74-months experience in prenatal care; all participants worked full time, i.e., an average of forty hours per week; 97.0% post graduated in a lato sensu postgraduate programme, but none of them have attended Obstetrical Nursing courses. The most frequently performed activities in prenatal care were as follows: user embracement (95.2%); laboratory analyses as requested, and educational actions, at present performed either individually (61.9%) or in groups (81.0%). The nurses reported they have to deal with difficulties in a series of activities related to prenatal care, specially those ones requiring practical knowledge, identifying obstetrical risk factors (26.3%), as well as the ones requiring practical skills (know-how), and obstetrical physical exam (36.8%). Furthermore, they reported yet that the nursing graduation teaching load was insufficient to support prenatal care both theoretically and practically, as well as the lack of professional training in hospital service protocols. Conclusions: The results of this study have highlighted that the nurses are not fully trained to develop prenatal care according to the Ministry of Health and the Municipal Health and Hygiene Secretariat of SJRP protocols. Thus, this study points out the need to invest in nursing professional training and in the reorganization of the prenatal care in order to actually change the reality of maternal care in São José do Rio Preto.

ASSUNTO(S)

pré-natal prenatal professional competence competência profissional obstetrical nursing enfermeira nurse enfermagem obstétrica

ACESSO AO ARTIGO

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